


High Hopes

by stardust_walker



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Slow Burn, a fic where we don't totally hate on lori grimes all the way? what a world we live in, also posted on Wattpad, carol has a younger sister, caryl friendship, the first fic i've written in a while so i apologize, the walking dead - Freeform, we love a good slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:47:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 28
Words: 88,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25676833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stardust_walker/pseuds/stardust_walker
Summary: Dove Sawyer wasn't made for this life.  She was more than happy going to her job, coming home, and maybe being able to talk to her sister if she was real lucky. None of that matters when the dead start to walk and she ended up in the woods with her older sister's family and a bunch of strangers. It's almost always been Dove and Carol against the world, but she was never expecting this. Dove is sure in for a surprise when someone in the group starts to look after her family almost as much as she does.
Relationships: Daryl Dixon/Original Female Character(s), Lori Grimes/Rick Grimes, Maggie Greene/Glenn Rhee, Rick Grimes/Michonne
Comments: 44
Kudos: 79





	1. The Highway

The young woman sat in the backseat of the Jeep Cherokee. She wished she'd had time to get her own car before her sister had panicked and basically dragged her out of the house with a half-packed suitcase, a few things already in her purse, and the clothes on her back. Ed was not happy about it and she could, for once, agree with him on that. It was a miracle they were both still alive 2 hours into a motionless traffic jam.

"Shouldn't they be saying something about this on the radio? What the hell is going on? Think you can change the station?" Dove finally spoke up for the first time in a half hour. The uncomfortable silence was broken by even more uncomfortable discussion. She'd tried to be as delicate as she could with Sofia in the seat right next to her. Too bad her own father couldn't be so kind.

"Don't know. Guess a degree doesn't teach you everything." Ed snapped from the front seat and she noticed her sister tense up next to him.

"Jesus Christ, Ed. I was just asking you a question," Dove let out a heavy sigh as she pushed her door open.

"Where are you going," Carol's voice sounded slightly higher pitched than the last time she'd said anything.

"I'm just going to see if anyone else might know something. Maybe someone has a CB or heard from someone in the city. I'll be back. If I'm not back in a half hour, send a search party," she joked as she ruffled her niece's hair, not missing another snide comment about her being an uppity bitch from the man in the driver's seat. She hated leaving her family alone with Ed but right now she didn't really have a choice. 

She felt like something was going on that someone else might know about and it was killing her not knowing. At least if no one else knew what was going on, she might be able to find someone actually intelligent to talk to. Anything was better than spending another minute inside the stuffy car in the Atlanta spring.

Part of her wished that she'd had time to change too. Damn Carol, she thought to herself as she pulled the fabric of her jean shorts back to their place an inch above her knee. Dove grabbed her sunglasses off the seat and slammed the car door shut as she started to meander her way down the freeway. 

It wasn't weird to see an Interstate crowded or at a near standstill, but that was usually at rush hour with people going home or to work. Something about the way it was right now was eerie. It wasn't a feeling that was strange to her by any means, working in mental health will do that to you. Dove paused at the car up and over one from Carol's.

Her eyes lingered at the pistol on the man's hip before shifting upwards to his shirt. "Hey, officer. Any idea what's going on here?" She frowned slightly as she took a step forward, the man turned slightly to look over at her. A dark haired woman was sitting on the trunk of the car, a boy no older than Sofia perched up there next to her. The poor kid looked pale and stressed out. His mother didn't look much better.

"No clue. Maybe they're screening people on their way into the refugee center? Only thing that makes sense." The man looked concerned as he ran a hand through his hair. He seemed nervous. Dove nodded slowly and shifted her weight to her other foot.

"I hope you're right." She ran a hand across her forehead to wipe away the sweat. "I'm Dove, by the way. Dove Sawyer. Back there's my sister, Carol. She's got a little girl about your boy's age. Sure she wouldn't mind the company. Plus we might have some extra water in there if you're thirsty, bud." She smiled comfortingly in the direction of the little boy.

"Mom..." The little boy looked up at his mom. The poor thing looked so stressed out. She couldn't help but wonder what they'd been through before they decided to go to the refugee camp.

"We'll have to see, Carl." The dark-haired woman ruffled his hair before she kissed his forehead. "Thank you." Dove didn't miss the look she shot to the officer.

"Well, I'm Shane. That over there is Lori and the little man is Carl," Shane held his hand out and Dove shook it.

"Nice to meet you. I'm planning on trekking up ahead. Seeing if anyone's heard anything. People might have family in the city, you know? I'll probably circle back within the hour though. I'll be sure to let you know if I find anything out," she wished she could be a little more comforting especially with a little kid being involved. They did seem grateful for any information though. There was no doubt in her mind that the cop would try to figure something out just like she was.

With a quick wave, she bid Shane goodbye and started back off down the highway.

~

She'd definitely been gone longer than she told her sister and she'd gotten a quiet sort of hell for it when she got back to the car. Carol didn't want Ed to hear that she'd been worried about her. "Do you have idea how worried Sofia was?" Carol said through gritted teeth as the two women stood a few feet from the car. Dove frowned and shifted her gaze from the car to the ground. She was happy, at least, that Sofia seemed happy and distracted by Carl and his mother having joined them shortly after Dove had departed.

"Sorry, guess I just lost track of time," Dove couldn't shake the eerie feeling that still crept up her spine. The sun was had started to go down. "I didn't hear anything. From anyone else, I mean. Everyone's clueless. Something isn't right, Carol. People looked sick..." She trailed off as her brother-in-law glared in their direction. It was clear this conversation was over before Carol even took a step towards her husband.

Dove let out a heavy sigh. "Hey jellybean," she almost whispered as she walked up behind Sofia and ruffled her hair. Dove sat there with them for a while, Lori was pretty easy to talk to. She reminded Dove a little bit of Carol in that she could see the other woman was fiercely protective of her son just like Carol was with Sofia. "Shane hear anything?" She squinted her hazel eyes at the older woman who shook her head.

"No, they just keep playing the emergency alert over and over again. Same one too. No updates or anything," Lori frowned as she leaned up against the car behind her son.

"Is that normal?"

"No it's not," Shane interrupted as he strolled up from the direction of his own car. Dove pursed her lips, any response lost as Shane pulled Lori away from the car. "We'll be back. I just want to go check something out."

Something was wrong. Something was really wrong. Dove's stomach twisted into a knot. She made a split second decision to pull the laces on her boots tighter before jumping off the trunk. "Where are you going now," Carol called after her as Dove started down the highway again. She needed to know what was going on. She had to.

Lori and Shane had disappeared behind the crowd of people that had started to fight on the highway before she even got within eyesight of them. "Hey!" Dove shouted as she came up closer to the fight. She stood up to her full height as she tried to get the attention of the group of men fighting. It happened fast, Dove had taken a step too close to the fight.

Next thing she knew was on the ground, her cheek throbbed where the stray punch had hit her. Dove pulled herself to her feet, a stream of curses ready to come out of her mouth when the bombs dropped. The sky lit up and buildings in the distance started to go down. There was no way this was happening.

A scream cut through the silence on the highway, followed by another. Cars were started up again, more fights were breaking out. Dove turned and started to run back to Carol's car. They had to go and they had to go now. 

She caught a glimpse of something in a car she'd passed. The person who'd looked sick was leaned over the person in the driver's seat, their teeth digging into the neck of their partner as blood covered their face. The blood drained from her face and a feeling of intense panic made her blood run ice cold.

The rest of the run back to the car was so fast, she could've sworn she teleported. Lori and Shane were already back trying to wrangle everyone up. "Get in the car, Ed," was the first thing that Dove said as she ran right past the door to the backseat and attempted the trunk closed as Ed was looking through his things. Probably making sure the little boy hadn't taken any of his food.

The anger was evident in his eyes but she was powered by nothing but fear right now and that was a powerful thing. "You trying to tell me what to do, huh?" Ed was too close. She tensed up, ready to throw a punch if she had to when Shane called out over the chaos.

"Just get in the car, man. Shit's going down, bad!" There was something in the other man's voice that actually made the other man listen. He didn't look too happy about it but when a cop sounds scared, it's safe to say you should probably listen.

Dove practically jumped into the backseat and slammed the door behind her. Sophia scooted closer to her in the backseat and wrapped her arms around her aunt. "What's happening?"

Carol glanced back at them, a worried look on her face. Dove started to feel the pain on the side of her face as she stroked Sophia's hair, her hazel eyes locked with Carol's blue ones. "I don't know but don't you worry. You're gonna be just fine."

They'd ended up following Shane, there was no wonder about that in her mind. The line of cars following behind them made her feel a little bit safer too. People made it out but she had a feeling in her gut that there was no way this would be over soon. Life was going to be very different and she hoped she wasn't lying to Sophia when she said she would be fine.


	2. The Wendigo

A week went by in the blink of an eye. It felt like it had dragged on at the same time. The group they were with was larger than Dove had expected it to be. There were about 40 of them, give or take a few. Dove hated it. Sure, some of the people were nice but some of them were people that she generally tried to avoid when not somewhere like where she worked...or used to work, rather. Still, it wasn't that she minded the people they were around at all as long as they contributed and minded their business.

She was used to seeing people like Merle Dixon, methed out of their minds and in for a 72 hour psych eval, strolling out the door after they had kicked it out of their system only to come back a few weeks later most times. Dove was sure she actually had seen Merle like that before but she wasn't about to mention that to him.

"How's your cheek feeling," Carol broke the silence as the two of them walked down to the water, each of them carrying a load of laundry in their arms.

"It's fine. Just stings a little when I touch it is all," Dove cleared her throat. She'd been trying not to think about how the bruise was probably fading, most likely an ugly yellow color by now. "I could ask you the same thing." She hadn't meant it to come out as mean as it did but she noticed the older woman almost flinch at the harshness of her words. "I'm sorry... I shouldn't have said that." Dove shook her head and gripped the load of laundry she was holding a little tighter.

Carol held her head a up a little higher as she fell into step next to the younger woman. "You're right. You shouldn't have." Dove didn't know what to say. There was probably nothing she could say, after all. She'd made the decision on her own to set up her tent a short distance away from her sister and brother-in-law. If she'd been closer, it definitely would have caused a scene if it were more accessible for her to run to her sister's aid. It had happened before and it would probably happen again.

"Listen, I'm sorry. I guess I'm just a little..."

"Tense. We all are." Carol shook her head as they stepped through the trees into the small clearing where a small group of other women sat, all doing the same thing they were about to do.

"This is just fucking prehistoric," Dove snorted and shook her head. They had talked about this when more people started filtering in. They definitely had to be careful about other people coming into camp. Some of them could be dangerous. Uncertain times meant that people might come a little more unhinged than they might normally. Most of the other women seemed alright, for the most part. Jacqui was kind, definitely opinionated and observant. Amy and her sister Andrea kept mostly to themselves but seemed pretty nice for the most part. Carol seemed to have really clicked with Lori and Dove found herself not minding the other woman. She'd heard bits and pieces about her husband, Rick, and it made her heart break for Lori and Carl.

Dove had kept her distance from most of the men. Dale seemed pretty nosey, especially when it came to matters like the bruise on her face when he'd first shown up to the camp with Amy and Andrea. Shane had taken over as leader right away. No one seemed to want to question a cop's authority even in what might be the end of the world. Glenn was sweet; she was pretty sure he'd delivered her a pizza a few times when she was late night cramming for college but she didn't want to ask. Even though she didn't want to be around Merle, or his brother by extension, she didn't mind them coming around in the group. They were contributing to feeding the group, after all. Dove was pretty sure they were holding out on some of their hunt, but could she really blame them? Ed had almost lost his mind over Carol offering Lori some of his food on the highway.

In spite of their faults, the Dixons had actually managed to enlighten the people around the campfire on the first night they'd joined them. "Shoot em. Right in the damn head. One of them comes at you, you take the fucking shot. Ain't nobody there anymore." The tone of the younger Dixon had actually made Dove shudder. He was dead serious, there was no doubt about that. Then Merle had called him a fucking buzzkill.

It wasn't hard to notice their sibling dynamic wasn't exactly the healthiest. Maybe her relationship with Carol wasn't the healthiest either. She was a therapist, not a god. "Time to put the mask on," Dove mumbled, causing Carol to let out a quiet laugh as Amy turned and waved at them.

"Hey guys! We thought you were about to ditch out on laundry duty," Amy beamed at them.

"And miss out on some quiet time? Wouldn't miss it for the world," Carol replied as she walked up and sat her and Ed's basket of laundry between her and Jacqui. Damn, she's good at this.

"I mean, I wish it was more like sitting in a laundry mat relaxing instead of manual labor, but I can't complain. I'd rather be doing this than sitting up there debating about what's more important to grab on a run to the city." Dove rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner and Jacqui laughed.

"Were they arguing about what's more important, toilet paper or batteries for the flashlights again?" Jacqui raised an eyebrow and Dove nodded.

"Please, tell me you'll talk some sense into these men on the run, Jacqui. I mean hell, grab both. I'd say they're both priorities. The campfire is nice every night but once it gets dark? Hell, it's like we walked into fucking Deliverance territory out here." Dove finished by whistling a part of 'Dueling Banjos'. Carol swatted at her with one of her shirts as she went to dip it in the water.

"You stop that." Carol shook her head in an attempt to seem disapproving, but she let out a quiet laugh. Andrea and Amy were laughing next to Dove.

"You think this was what people did when they had to wash clothes together before washing machines and stuff," Amy broke the silence a few minutes later.

Dove wiped the back of her hand across her forehead and moved her hair out of her field of vision. "You mean sweat to death?"

"Give themselves back problems?" Jacqui added before she nodded at the other women. "Probably."

"Probably complained about their husbands too," Andrea added with a subtle look towards Carol. Dove straightened up, ready to say something to the other woman about minding her business when a branch cracked in the woods behind them.

Everyone straightened up at this and Dove reached for the knife she had set next to her basket of laundry on reflex. She overextended herself, not realizing how far it was from her in her panicked state and fell to her knees, fingers closed around the handle of the knife as two figures stepped out from the trees.

Jacqui let out an annoyed sounding sigh as she lowered her own weapon, not bothering to hide the fact she rolled her eyes. Amy scowled at the two men as Amy attempted to look composed even though Dove was sure she'd heard her panic too.

Carol looked the most shaken up of all of them and Dove couldn't blame her for that. It was what her home had created for her. Instant panic at the thought of the person stepping into their conversation being Ed.

Dove stood up slowly, throwing her knife back into the dirt as she brushed her knees off. "Jesus Christ, Merle. You're lucky none of us had a gun. Would've blown your head off," She grumbled as she turned her back to the older man, heart still racing at the potential of one of those walkers coming out of the woods at them.

"Oh do you think one of you would have, Birdie?" Merle didn't bother to hide his amusement. Dove turned slightly and flipped him off.

"Leave us alone, Merle. Can't you see we're workin' here?"

"Dove..." Carol tugged at her arm and Dove relented, picking up another shirt as she sat half turned towards the woods now.

"Well, shit. We just came to tell you lovely ladies that we hunted squirrel for dinner later. But if you're gonna be ungrateful about it then, shit."

Andrea frowned. Amy tried her best to hide the fact that she was disgusted at the fact that they were having to eat 'little woodland creatures' again. Dove had heard her complaining about it a few nights ago.

"Not being ungrateful, Merle. Just prefer you call me by my name is all," Dove rolled her eyes.

"Oh I'll call your name..." Merle was for sure going to say something that would make Dove want to go for her knife again when Jacqui cut him off.

"Will you be skinning them then? We'll cook them, so long as you do that." Dove shot Jacqui a quick look, trying to convey some kind of thank you without any words.

"I'll do it," a different voice spoke and the two set of sisters turned back to the hunters.

Dove raised an eyebrow slightly. They'd all barely heard Daryl speak since the first night when they were talking about walkers and Chupacabras. He seemed to let Merle do all the talking; or maybe Merle let himself do all the talking.

" Thank you," Carol nodded at him and turned back to the laundry. Ed would be mad if they were gone too long like they were last time.

"Yeah, thanks Daryl." Dove said as the two brothers turned to march back off towards their own campsite. Merle kept walking, the others kept washing their laundry, but Dove didn't miss the fact that Daryl turned slightly and nodded at her in recognition.

\------------------------  
Dove was always good at keeping herself busy The only way she kept track of days was after she happened to find her planner in her bag as she was looking for clean clothes. That was how she came to realize that three weeks had passed so quickly. How had they been out here for a month at this point? She couldn't imagine how bored the kids around the camp felt and that was when she decided how she would spend the rest of her evening.

Dove sat in one of the folding chairs with a look of concentration on her face. Dark eyebrows furrowed, lips pursed as she glanced up and then back down at her hands again. "Got it," she said so suddenly that Sophia jumped a little in the chair across from her. Carl leaned forward in anticipation as a smug smile appeared on Dove's face. "Got any eights?" She sounded so sure of herself.

"Hm...go fish!" Sophia said brightly after a few seconds.

"Ah hell," Dove grumbled. She didn't miss the sideways look that Carol shot her when she swore. "Alright, Carl. Don't let me down, buddy."

The little boy shrugged, a smile on his face. "Go fish."

"Ah, double hell," Dove almost shouted, much to the amusement of her niece and the little boy.

"Children, that's enough of that," Dale chuckled as he walked past them towards the campfire, "besides I think dinner's ready anyways."

Before Dove could say anything else, the two children jumped to their feet. Sophia following close behind Carl as the two of them ran off to join their mothers near the fire. "Fine! Y'all were a bunch of cheaters anyway," Dove called jokingly after the children and she heard Glenn let out a laugh.

"How can someone cheat at go fish?" Glenn inquired as Dove strolled over behind Dale, who was shaking his head at the younger woman.

"Well, Glenn," Dove sighed as she sat down next to the Asian man, "You can have an eight in your hand and not give it to someone when they call it. Ain't that a good example, Carl?" She turned to look at the boy and waved a finger at him disapprovingly.

Lori ruffled Carl's hair as Glenn let out a quiet laugh. Dale shook his head as he started passing around one of the paper plates that was piled up with meat. "Well, it should be reassuring that fish isn't on the menu for tonight," the older man said which caused Amy to giggle.

"It smells good," Sophia piped up from the spot on Dove's left as the plate got passed to her. Dove shared a look with Carol before her gaze shifted up slightly. Ed didn't eat with the group, but still he lurked there like an albatross around her sister's neck. Carol forced a smile as she handed a piece of the currently unidentified meat to the little girl before passing it on.

It was actually peaceful that night as everyone sat around the fire. It was clear to Dove that most of the men, Shane and the Dixons especially, seemed to still be on high alert. However, the quiet was welcome.

"Ya know, I gotta say. This is probably the best thing I've eaten in almost a month," Shane chuckled as he moved to run a hand through his hair. The group nodded in agreement, a few mumbled 'Thank you's being uttered as everyone gradually finished up their meals.

"Yeah, rabbit is a little more tender than squirrel," Merle Dixon announced loudly as he threw a small bone into the fire.

Sophia let out a little squeak from next to Dove and the dark haired woman moved to put an arm around her niece as Carol brushed Sophia's hair back. "No, no, Soph. I'm sure Merle's just joking." Dove shot a dark look across the fire at the older man. She momentarily thought about jumping over the fire and punching him right in the mouth. The thought would have to be enough for her for today, though. Ed mumbled something from behind Carol, but she was grateful that her sister seemed to ignore it.

"A very mean joke, but I'm sure he's joking," Carol whispered as she pressed a kiss to her young daughter's forehead.

Dove still rubbed the little girl's arm in a comforting manner, her gaze shifted to the other man across the fire from her. Daryl looked miserable as ever but she locked eyes for a split second before he stared back into the fire.

"Yeah, Sophia, I'm sure he just cooked up Daryl's Chupacabra," Morales smirked from beside his wife. The laughter wasn't so quiet now as almost everyone around the fire struggled for a moment to hold in their laughter before Merle let out a loud, obnoxious laugh. Knee slap right along with it.

"You hear that, baby brother? You'd know all about that Mexican goat sucker, wouldn't you," Merle shoved Daryl's arm roughly.

Sophia shifted uncomfortably in her mother's arms, but a small smile was on her face. Lori rolled her eyes disapprovingly. "Are we really going to bring that up again? You gave the kids nightmares with that story..."

"Mom," Carl hissed through gritted teeth, "I didn't have nightmares, I swear." There were scattered chuckles around the fire this time. Shane reached over and ruffled the young boys hair, though this only caused the scowl to deepen on Carl's face.

"Yeah, I don't know why y'all try to make fun of that story, either. There's a lot scarier things out there than a Chupacabra," Dove announced to the fire. She couldn't stop the smirk that crept onto her face when most of the attention shifted to her.

"Dove's right. The walkers..." Amy frowned and leaned closer to her older sister.

Dove shook her head quickly, a hand ran through her dark hair. "Nah, I don't mean the walkers. I mean the wendigos," she stated matter-of-factly, "which, hell, might mean the walkers for all we know."

Ed snorted from behind her, "You sure you were workin' in that psych ward and not a patient there? I mean, you were not around enough to be in the loony bin," Ed kicked at the dirt by his feet. Dove sneered at her brother-in-law, "You know what..."

"Yeah I thought you were a psych doctor, not a psycho doctor," Merle snickered as he leaned forward in his chair.

"You know what, to you too, Merle Dixon," Dove turned again, a finger pointed at the older man. "I wouldn't make fun of things that you don't have knowledge of! The mind is a powerful thing. Chupacabras might not have been real once, but they might as well be now. There were these monks who practiced this super deep thought...meditation shit, you know? People said that if they focused hard enough on something in their heads, they could make it real. I mean that's the basics of it, but if enough people believed in it, they could make it real." Dove noticed now that most of the attention was shifting from her to Merle. Daryl, however, seemed to have finally moved his focus from the fire right to her.

"Sounds like psycho bullshit to me," Merle leaned back in the folding chair he was sat on, arms folded across his chest.

"Call it psycho bullshit all you want," Dove shrugged her shoulders, "but wendigos seem pretty damn real to me right about now." After a few moments of silence, it was Carl who spoke up.

"What's a wendigo," the quiet little voice spoke up from where he was perched at his mother's feet. Carol narrowed her eyes at her sister, their eyes locked for a moment before Dove looked away. There was movement next to her as Carol stood up, taking Sophia with her. "Thanks for the food. Night. C'mon, Sophia," Carol's voice was quiet as she placed a hand on Dove's shoulder for a moment before moving to usher the young girl off to bed. Dove thought she heard Sophia say something in protest but she didn't come back to the fire.

Dove cleared her throat and shook her head. "Well, Carl. I'll tell you." Dove looked at her feet for a moment before she turned her attention to the little boy, a reassuring smile on her face. She was going to tell this story now, even if just to spite Merle Dixon and Ed Peletier. "You see, back in the olden days, they used to tell stories to people in order to keep them from doing bad things." That was probably the easiest way to explain that to people, especially with children present. "There were these people called the Algonquians," Dove started.

"This is some of that featherhead bullshit. I should've known," Merle snarked.

"No one's making you listen, son," Dale said in a tone that was probably meant to be warning.

"If you don't want to hear the story, why don't you just wander off back to your tent and hope the Chupacabra doesn't get you," Jacqui piped up from the right side of Dale.

"Go on, Sawyer. I wanna hear the rest of it," a quiet voice spoke up. Maybe it was the fact that Jim, who barely spoke, actually said something to her that made her want to continue.

Dove narrowed her eyes slightly, "Anyways, yes they were a Native American tribe. Someplaces in Canada too, I think. There was this story about this trapper from Alberta, I think his name was...Swift something. His family was starving and one of his kids ended up dead."

"What happened to them," Andrea questioned.

"Well...by the time they found them, the guy had killed and ate the rest of his family that was still alive." There were murmured comments of disgust and horror from around the fire. Carl stared up at his mom with wide eyes for a moment before trying to seem like he had some composure. "But mostly, wendigos are seen as these supernatural beings. Cannibals. It was something they used to keep people from eating each other when they were starving in the winter. Legend said that whenever someone resorted to cannibalism, they would never be full again. They would just keep eating and eating. Never stopping. Constantly searching for new victims." Dove finished with a sinister tone.

"Well shit," Merle uttered from across the fire.

"And you know what their favorite food was?" Dove continued in a quiet tone, eyes flicking quickly from one person around the fire to another. "They especially liked to eat....little boys!" She almost shouted as she jumped slightly in Carl's direction.

Laughter echoed around the campfire, Lori shook her head as she tried to suppress a laugh. Carl was trying to look like he hadn't clung to Shane's arm for a split second, a nervous laugh escaped his lips.

"Nah, I'm just joking. What they really have a taste for is bald rednecks," Dove smirked as she reached over to ruffle Carl's hair. She thought she saw a smile for a split second across Daryl's face before Merle flipped her off.

Dove was tempted to say something else, but the smug look stayed on her face as Shane cleared his throat. "As much as I love campfire story time," Shane gave Dove a look that caused her to simply shrug her shoulders, "I think we should all be getting to bed. Especially the little ones. Y'all got a run to go out on tomorrow. Need your rest."

"Sure thing, Deputy D-" Merle began before Andrea cut him off by jumping up from her seat. "Right well, night everyone."

Everyone said their goodnights as they began to trickle off to their respective tents. Merle and Daryl were some of the first ones to leave, not surprising anyone.

"Nighty night, Merle. Don't let the walkers bite," Dove called to the retreating backs of the hunters.

Lori shoved her shoulder slightly as she laughed quietly, "God, you're bad."

"Ah he can take it," Dove shrugged her shoulders. 

"Night, Lori." Dove turned on her heel after a few minutes of helping clean up around the fire and started off towards her own tent. As she ducked into the tent, she hoped that sleep would come easier tonight. All she could do was listen to the quiet arguments from the tent closest to hers. She waited for a moment and, just like the past few nights, her tent unzipped.

"Dovey, are you sleepin'?" Sophia's voice, groggy and half asleep sounding, came from the flap of the tent.

"Not yet, bug. C'mon. You can stay with me again," she moved around in an attempt to make room in her sleeping bag for her niece.

Sophia shuffled over and once they were all settled, she yawned "Can you tell me a nice story to help me sleep?"

Dove flinched as she heard Ed shout something from a little farther away, followed by an unsettling quiet. "I sure can. You want me to make up one about Princess Sophia?" Dove tried to hide the stress in her voice. Her hands shook as she stroked her niece's hair.

Sophia nodded slightly, probably already starting to nod off in the safety of another tent. "Alright, there once was a beautiful princess named Sophia. She lived in a big castle in the mountains with her mommy and her auntie where everyone was always happy and she got to eat cupcakes whenever she wanted...." Dove continued the story until Sophia nodded off, the story made little sense by that point as Dove allowed herself to finally fall into a restful sleep.


	3. New Sheriff in town

No matter how long they were out there, it didn’t make falling asleep easier. There were some nights when she couldn’t sleep at all. Dove pushed open the flap of her tent after an hour or two of fighting to go to sleep. The young woman turned on her flashlight as she brushed some of her dark brown hair away from her eyes. The fire was still burning, so someone else had to be awake.

“Hey,” Dove announced her presence quietly as she stepped into the light of the fire. Her dark eyes finally landed on Jim. “Can’t sleep?”

“Who can these days,” the older man mumbled quietly. Dove nodded in the affirmative as she knelt next to the log Jim was sat on.

“Is it bad if I ask what you’re thinking about,” she questioned and shifted her gaze up. Jim had puzzled her and there was something about him that made her uneasy. It wasn’t that she thought he was dangerous, but it was more like a case where she was more worried about what he might end up doing to himself. “I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” she joked as she lowered herself down to sit on the dirt.

Jim cracked a small smile and shook his head.

“Alright that sounded a little…crude,” Dove let out a quiet laugh and tapped Jim with her elbow, “gotcha for a second though.” She stared off into the darkness for a moment. “Sometimes when I can’t sleep, I think about my ex. Whether he’s alive or…you know,” she shrugged her shoulders and reached back to scratch the back of her neck.

Jim nodded his head slowly and Dove sighed, “He called me right when everything started to get really bad. We used to live up near D.C. He wanted me to come up there, be with him. He thought it would be safer up there or something. Maybe he wanted to keep an eye on me, I don’t know.”

“Why didn’t you go?” Jim interjected quietly.

“Couldn’t very well leave my sister with Ed with everything else falling apart, now could I? Plus, I wanted to be able to help keep an eye on Sophia,” Dove traced a finger absentmindedly over the tattoo on her left forearm. “So, I guess when I can’t sleep, it’s a whole lot of ‘what if’s about different choices I coulda made…”

The fire crackled in the uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Jim spoke. “Every time I try to sleep, I see my family.” Jacqui had told them in the early days how Jim was the only one left out of his whole family. Dove and the others never asked after that.

The dark-haired woman placed a comforting hand on Jim’s arm, “I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, me too.”

Dove frowned a little as she leaned forward and reached into the back pocket of her jeans. She pulled out a small bag and squinted at it in the firelight before letting out a quiet ‘Ah-ha’. “Here,” she held out a hand, closed around something that Jim couldn’t see.

“What’s that,” Jim eyed her warily as he held his hand out.

“Melatonin. It might help you sleep. It was the next big thing at the place I worked at. Non-addictive and everything, your body creates it naturally, blah blah blah.” She dropped the two of the pills into his hand. “Take two of those and call me in the morning,” she joked.

Jim stared at the pills in his hand for a second before he glanced back up at her. “Thanks.” He nodded his head as Dove watched him stand up slowly.

“No problem. If you ever wanna talk, I mean. I’m used to it,” she offered with a sad smile.

“We should probably find you a couch first, huh,” Jim drawled. Dove stared blankly for a moment before she let out a snort of laughter.

“Yeah, real cute. Now you head off to bed now. I’m serious! Get some shut eye.” She pointed a finger at him as he turned slightly. Jim stopped for a moment and gave her shoulder a quick squeeze.

“Thank you.”

Dove sat there in silence for a while after Jim wandered off to bed. She didn’t even notice her eyes drifted shut until she felt something touch her back. She jolted awake and turned around quickly only to come face to face with a startled looking Glenn. “Jesus Christ!” Dove hissed as she stood up and gave Glenn a shove. “You tryin’ to give me a heart attack?”

“Jeez, sorry! I was just coming to relieve Shane from guard duty and didn’t want you to fall in.” Even in the dark, Dove could see the color rising up Glenn’s neck.

“Sorry. Can you blame me for being jumpy though?”

“Can’t blame you at all, bird,” Shane said as he climbed down the ladder of the camper. Dove rolled her eyes at him and Glenn patted her once on the shoulder before he walked off to take the other man’s place.

Shane strolled over, hands in his pockets. Dove watched as he ran a hand through his hair. “That was a nice thing you did for Jim, ya know.”

“So much for doctor patient confidentiality, but I guess that didn’t mean much to cops in the first place,” Dove said with a playful tone. “But it felt…I don’t know. Good? It felt…”

“Normal,” Shane questioned and Dove only nodded her head. Shane tried to stifle a yawn, but Dove couldn’t hold hers back. “I think that’s a sign we both need to catch some shut eye too. Maybe take some of your own advice, huh?” Shane raised an eyebrow at her.

Dove simply raised her right hand to her forehead and brought her hand back down to her side after a moment, “10-4, captain.” She turned her flashlight on, turned on her heel, and shuffled quietly back off to her tent.

Behind her, Glenn shook his head from the top of the camper and Shane couldn’t help but think about what he’d heard her say about leaving Carol alone with Ed.

~

“Shouldn’t they be back by now?” Amy shielded her eyes from the sun as she shouted up at the top of the camper.

Dove looked sideways at Dale from her perch. “She’s right ya know. Maybe the rain got them all fucked up?” She offered as an option.

Dale frowned at the younger woman. “I’m sure they’re just fine. Glenn’s very responsible. He’s gotten them in and out of the city enough times in the past month.” He glanced over the side at Amy. “I’m sure they’re just fine!”

Dove rolled her eyes and slapped her knees. “You got this on your own, old man?”

“Yeah I got it,” Dale nodded his head as he raised the binoculars to his eyes.

Dove actually smiled a little as she climbed down the ladder, hearing Carl laugh at whatever was said to him was welcoming. She froze in the middle of the ladder as a car alarm sounded.

“Talk to me, Dale!” Shane shouted.

“Is it them, are they back?” Amy jumped up from her seat as Dove hopped down off the ladder. Hazel eyes scanned the group for Carol and Sophia, she reached out a hand to beckon the small girl forward as the noise kept sounding.

“Well I’ll be damned,” Dale sounded annoyed, yet amused as he spoke. “A stolen car is my guess.”

“Wow, that’s mighty responsible, huh.” Dove rolled her eyes as she stroked Sophia’s hair.

“What’s going on,” Carol whispered as she came up alongside her.

“Some doofus stole a car and the alarm is soundin’ to high heaven,” Dove raised her voice slightly as the noise got louder.

A bright red sports car came around the corner as Dove finished. She let out a quiet whistle. Whoever stole it had good taste at least.

She wished she could say she was surprised as the door swung open and Glenn stepped out, shit-eating grin on his face.

“Holy crap turn that thing off,” Dale managed to yell over the alarm. Sophia blocked her ears and wrinkled her nose as Carol placed a hand on her shoulder.

“I don’t know how!” Dove shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose as Glenn just threw his hands up in the air. She didn’t feel bad for him for having Amy and Shane hounding him. Why the hell would he bring that thing up here anyway?

“Everyone’s fine,” the whole group was finally able to hear. Dove couldn’t help but say a silent thanks for Jim. “Except Merle.”

“Are you trying to draw every walker for miles,” Shane attempted to scold Glenn.

“I wouldn’t worry about the alarm so much, Shane. It echoed all through the hills. No don’t get mad at me! I’m not arguin’ with you,” Dale lectured Shane and turned his disappointment on Glenn. He had, at least, earned himself a lecture about being more responsible.

“Sorry…Cool car, though?” Glenn added and Dove gave him an appreciative nod and a thumbs up.

“Yeah but you didn’t have to be so irresponsible,” she shot a pointed look at Dale before she glanced back at Glenn.

The whole group seemed to freeze as another truck rolled up. Dove watched as everyone ran to hug their families and she couldn’t help but feel a little sad for a few people. She felt sad as she watched Lori kneel to comfort Carl. The other woman had confided in her how Carl seemed to hope that every time they went out, his dad would come back with them. Another twinge of sadness hit her as she looked down at her feet, almost ashamed of feeling bad for Daryl Dixon. He would never get to say goodbye to his family.

“The guy’s a cop, like you,” Dove caught as the other discussed a new guy.

She grabbed Carol’s arm as she watched Carl scream for his father and run off towards him. “Holy shit,” Dove whispered.

“Is that Carl’s daddy,” Sophia looked up at both women.

“It is,” and Carol really smiled for what felt like the first time in weeks,

Dove didn’t miss the annoyed glances from Ed in everyone else’s directions. They had probably interrupted a conversation that he was trying to rope Jim into about Nascar or something. Poor Jim was just too nice for his own good.

The rest of the day seemed to go by in a haze as Carol offered to wash Rick’s clothes for him. Dove walked up to Lori’s tent, or Rick’s tent now. “You decent?” She called as she planted her feet, leaned against a tree. The sheriff ducked out, old dirty clothes in a bag in his hands. “I’m Dove. Carol’s sister. She sent me to get your clothes so she can wash ‘em for you.” She smiled kindly at the man. She couldn’t imagine what he’d been through.

“You sure? She doesn’t have,’ Rick started to protest, but Dove cut him off as she grabbed the bag in one hand.

“She knows that. She just wants to is all,” Dove reassured him. “Now, you go spend time with your family. Carl’s been talkin’ bout you non-stop to Sophia since we got here so I think he has a lot of time he wants to make up.” She placed a hand on his arm and patted it a few times before she turned and walked off to find her sister.

~

Neither one of them said anything about the grenade Carol had found in Rick’s clothes. Carol had slapped her arm a little harder than she’d meant to in order to get her attention. A few moments of hushed whispers later and Carol had shoved the grenade back into her own bag, stuffed safely in between clean clothes ‘just in case’.

It wasn’t mentioned as they sat around the fire that night. Dove was perched in between Glenn and T-Dog, completely enthralled by Rick’s story. She didn’t blame Lori for thinking that Rick had died. She thought the same thing about the other people she hadn’t seen since this whole thing started. Her right pointer finger traced the tattoo on her left arm again as her hazel eyes locked on Shane.

There was a hint of something on his face as Rick expressed his gratitude towards him. It wasn’t modesty, or even his own gratitude, it seemed more like shame. But that couldn’t be right.

“There goes words falling short again. Paltry things,” Dale nodded his head.

“Words can mean almost nothing, sometimes actions mean a whole hell of a lot more,” Dove mumbled quietly.

She jumped slightly as she watched Ed throw another log into the fire. “Now Ed, you might wanna rethink that log,” Shane said, and Dove could swear that sometimes, he was just looking for a fight.

“It’s cold, man.” Ed grumbled and Dove clenched her jaw. T-Dog placed a hand on her arm, an attempt to comfort her. There goes those actions meaning more than words.

“Cold doesn’t change the rules. Keep our fires low, just embers,” Shane lectured.

Dove glanced around the fire as she rubbed her hands together anxiously, finally looking down as Rick locked eyes with her for a moment. It was probably more than enough for him to pick up on what was causing the sudden shift in mood if he was smart enough.

“I said it’s cold. You should mind your own business for once,” Ed sounded so smug. She would be lying if she said she didn’t think about running up and shoving him face first into the burning fire. T-Dog reached out for Shane’s arm, missing him by an inch. Glenn leaned closer, placing a comforting arm around the dark-haired woman’s shoulder as she rested her elbows on her knees and buried her face in her hands.

“Please someone just make him stop, he’s just going to make it worse,” she pleaded quietly.

Carol was good at pretending, thankfully, as she was able to convince Shane that everything was ‘fine’ or at least she thought she was. Dove caught Shane saying something about “If you’re both cold, you can come sit with us,” which she couldn’t blame Carol for refusing. It would just make it worse.

Dove’s head raised from her hands as Shane sat back down and Daryl Dixon was brought up. She had waited patiently to say her peace for hours. “He won’t be too happy to hear his brother was left behind,” Dale said sagely, and Dove nodded in agreement.

Her brow furrowed as Rick and T-Dog both mentioned telling Daryl and seemed to want to discuss whose fault it was.

“It won’t matter to him who’s fault it was,” Dove interjected, “All that will matter is that you did it and that makes both of you the enemy. Hell, that might make everyone at this camp the enemy. That’s what we have to be ready for.”

“Plus, I don’t mean to bring race into this, but it might sound better coming from a white guy,” Glenn frowned.

“I mean I didn’t want to be the one to say it,” Dove rubbed her hands on her knees as she raised her eyebrows slightly.

“I did what I did. Hell, if I’m gonna hide it from him,” T-Dog stated bluntly.

“Now, listen, as much as I’m a sucker for accountability, I doubt Daryl is gonna appreciate it as much as anyone here might,” she waved her hand around the circle. “Help me out here, sheriff,” she ran a hand through her hair as she looked over at Rick. She felt a little guilty about putting him on the spot as she watched Lori stroke Carl’s hair.

“We should tell the truth. Merle was out of control,” Andrea said, much to the group’s surprise. “He could have gotten us all killed. Someone had to do something. It’s nobody’s fault but Merle’s that he got left behind. Your husband did what was right,” the blonde woman finished.

The group shared looks. “That’s what we tell Daryl? You think that’s going to end in a rational discussion,” Dale questioned. Dove couldn’t help but agree with Dale. It was going to end badly, whether it be for Daryl or someone else.

“I stopped long enough to chain that door,” T-Dog revealed. He continued about how he chained the door.

“So…”

“Merle’s alive. Chained to that rooftop. That’s on all of us,” T-Dog stood up and walked away from the fire.

A heavy sigh escaped Dove’s lips as she ran a hand down her face. “I think we should all think on this. Come back to the conversation in the morning. It’s been a long day,” she suggested.

Dove lay awake staring at the ceiling of her tent that night. A million different scenarios running through her head about how tomorrow would go, but none of them were good. She fell asleep with Daryl Dixon on her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Daryl actually comes into the story next chapter and I am so excited. Thank you guys for all the support so far! I'm going to try and update every Sunday but with how crazy ~2020~ is in general, sometimes it might be every other Sunday.
> 
> P.S: Jim deserved B E T T E R


	4. Tell it to the frogs

The weirdest thing is that a few months ago, Dove wouldn’t think that listening to kids running and playing would sound as sweet as it did.

A small chuckle escaped her as she sat on the steps leading into Dale’s RV. The horrified look on Glenn’s face as he stopped mid-greeting was just as amusing.

“Well. Good morning to you too, sunshine,” Dove squinted as she stood up and moved to stand next to him.

“When did they start tearing it apart,” Glenn frowned as he folded his arms in front of his chest.

Dove shrugged her shoulders, “’Bout a half an hour ago, I suppose.” She ran a hand through her dark hair as she turned her head slightly. Rick was finally awake again. Dove raised a hand to shield her eyes from the sun as she greeted the newcomer. “Mornin’, Rick!”

“Go on! Tear it apart, you vultures.” Glenn scowled and shook his head. Dove couldn’t keep herself from letting out a snort of laughter.

“Generators need every drop of fuel they can get,” Dale stated matter-of-factly as he walked past them.

“He has a fair point. I’d rather have a shower than a fancy car,” Dove mumbled quietly.

“I thought I’d get to drive it another few days,” Glenn sighed.

Dove turned her head slightly as Rick responded, “Maybe we’ll get to steal another one someday.”

This new way of living sure was a hell of a thing when you had a sheriff encouraging grand theft auto.

Dove placed a comforting hand on Glenn’s shoulder, “Maybe an even nicer one! One that’s not going to send an alarm running for miles next time too.” Glenn just let out an annoyed sigh.

Glenn seemed to be resigned to the fact that his car was being torn apart by Jim. Dove patted his shoulder again as she watched him step forward to converse with the other man. Knowing him, he was still probably trying to talk about what a cool car it was to anyone who would listen.

A revving engine caught the attention of a few members of the camp as Shane pulled up. He announced, “Make sure to boil the water before use.”

Carol made her way over to Dove. “Too bad about Glenn’s car, huh?”

The response caught in Dove’s throat as a shrill scream erupted from the woods close by, followed by another voice screaming “Mom!!”

A panicked look was exchanged between the sisters for a moment and then they were both off. Carol screamed for Sophia and the relief was obvious on Dove’s face as the little girl broke through the trees with Carl hot on her heels.

Tiny arms wrapped themselves around her waist as Dove knelt quickly to survey her niece for any marks. “Are you alright, Soph? Nothing bit you?” Sophia shook her head quickly, only able to muster up a panicked whimper. Carol finally broke through the trees behind her and let out a relieved cry as Sophia released her aunt with a cry of, “Mommy!!”

Dove glanced around quickly before she pointed back towards camp. “Take them back now! I’m just gonna make sure everything’s alright!” Carol nodded her head and scooped Sophia up.

Lori, however, eyed her warily for a moment before the brunette disappeared into the tree line again.

As she broke through the trees she held back a hysterical laugh. They were just stood around the damn thing, beating it with sticks. So much for being evolved past a caveman brain.

Amy let out a disgusted groan as the walkers head was finally chopped off.

Dale muttered, “That’s the first one we’ve had out here.”

Jim replied, “They must be running out of food in the city.”

Dove looked over at Amy and Andrea. Both of the sisters were just looking on like a couple of deer in the headlights and she couldn’t blame them. She felt a little nauseous herself.

Branches snapped in the woods and all conversation stopped. Andrea put a protective arm around Amy and Dove took a slow step forward towards the men. Curiosity was a bitch of a thing, but she wanted to see what exactly was going to happen.

Her heart leapt into her throat and plummeted back to her stomach as Daryl Dixon came into view. Her eyes locked with Jim’s in a moment of panic before she quickly looked down at her feet. Honestly, she would rather have a walker run out of the woods right now than have to face the inevitable.

Daryl looked pissed already. _Definitely_ a good sign for them. “That was my deer. Look at it! All gnawed on by this filthy, disease ridden, motherless, proxy bastard!”

Dale shook his head in disgust, “Now come on, son. That’s not helping anyone.”

Daryl’s temper flared up again as he stepped quickly over the walker, headed right for Dale. Dove took a quick step closer to Rick as she eyed the officer, trying to communicate that this was not a good sign. “What do you know about it, old man? Why don’t you take that stupid hat and go back to ‘on golden pond’?”

A surprised laugh, which was able to be quickly covered up as a cough escaped Dove’s lips. Glenn elbowed her slightly in the side and narrowed his eyes once he had her attention. The woman merely shrugged as she turned her attention back to the dead animal. Her stomach did begin to rumble at the thought of venison, or anything other than squirrels for that matter. A sigh left her lips as Shane stated, “I wouldn’t risk that.”

Daryl’s focus drifted to her, almost asking for another opinion. Dove shrugged her shoulders before she slipped her hands into her back pockets, “As good as it sounds, it’s too risky. We got kids to think about and what if they eat tainted meat? Get sick?”

Daryl sighed and shook his head, “Damn shame. I got a few squirrels though. ‘Bout a dozen or so. That’ll have to do.” The calmness in the air broke as the walker head at her feet started snapping its jaw again. Dove let out a startled shriek and stumbled back into Glenn as Daryl shot an arrow into it’s brain. “Gotta be the brain. Don’t ya’ know nothin?”

The focus of the group shifted again as Daryl stalked off towards camp. Dale looked startled, “I don’t see this going well.”

Shane removed the hat from his head as the group started to walk, Dove started to take longer strides to keep up with the two officers. She heard Shane mention Daryl’s name and spoke up.

“I think you guys really need to think about doing this,” Dove spoke, concern in her voice. “I think you oughta try and break it to him as gently as possible. People like him tend to react violently, plus he seems pretty hyped up from losing that deer.”

The two men kept moving, but Rick glanced over his shoulder at her. “What’d you do before this?”

“I was a therapist. Getting ready to work on my PhD. Why?”

She didn’t miss the look the two men exchanged and fell back a step. Glenn flinched as he heard Daryl yell for Merle. “This is gonna be a shit show,” Glenn sighed.

Dove shook her head as Shane stopped Daryl in his tracks. “Poor guy. I got money on Dixon, though. He’s a scrapper.” She whispered so only Glenn could hear. Glenn let out a nervous chuckle as the two of them came to a stop next to the Jeep.

“There was a problem in Atlanta.” _Seriously_ , Dove thought, _he’s going to drag it out like this? What a mess._

“He dead?” Dove gripped Glenn’s wrist a little tighter than she meant to as she took a step closer to him.

“We’re not sure.”

“He either is or her ain’t!” Dove couldn’t really blame him for being so angry. She could only imagine how mad she would be if it were Carol on that roof. She would probably be trying to kick the ass of anyone she could find.

“No easy way to say this, so I’ll just say it,” Rick stated as he finally took a step forward. What a time to play good cop, bad cop.

Rick introduced himself, only to be met with, “Rick Grimes, you got somethin’ you wanna tell me?”

“Your brother was a danger to us all. So I handcuffed him on a roof, hooked him to a piece of metal,” Rick finished. Damn, she had to admire how he got right to the point about it. “He’s still there.”

Daryl started pacing like a caged animal. “Hold on. Let me process this. You’re saying you handcuffed my brother to a roof and you left him there?” Daryl shouted. Dove could feel her pulse quickening as a million and one ways that she was trained to de-escalate someone this angry ran through her head. None of them seemed to make any sense right now under the heat from the burning Atlanta sun.

The next few seconds were a blur. Daryl yelled, Dove let out a startled yelp as the squirrels flew towards her, she stepped back closer to Glenn, and just like that, Daryl was on the ground. T-Dog stepped forward, shouting something about a knife. Dove took a few slow steps forward, eyes wide as saucers as she watched Shane bring him down in a chokehold after a few swings of a knife.

“Chokeholds illegal,” Daryl managed to choke out.

Shane sounded too comfortable with it for Dove’s liking. “Yeah, well, file a complaint.” Dove argued with herself internally as she watched Daryl keep struggling to be let go.

Rick knelt in front of the other two men, clearly trying to calm the situation down. “I’d like to have a calm discussion on this topic.”

Dove scowled as she squatted down between the two officers. “Not to tell you how to do your job, but it’s awful hard to have a calm discussion with a man whose air supply is being cut off,” she finished through gritted teeth.

Rick glanced at her before he turned back to Daryl, “You think we can manage that?”

The two officers nodded at each other and Dove stood up quickly as Daryl finally got released. She watched for a moment, still in shock about what just happened, when she saw Daryl still trying to catch his breath as he pointed at Shane. Dove turned quickly and placed a hand on Shane’s arm. “Just back up, man. Rick’s got it. You don’t need to be bad cop right now,” she pushed him back gently before she walked past the other two men, joining Lori by the steps to the RV.

“You good,” the other woman asked, her eyes not leaving the scene in front of her.

“Yeah just adrenaline rush. I’m fine,” Dove nodded as she brushed her hair out of her eyes. She turned her head slightly and met Carol’s worried gaze through the window of the RV. Dove held her hand up and nodded her head.

“It’s not Rick’s fault,” T-Dog interjected and suddenly the focus was on him. “I had the key. I dropped it.”

Daryl snapped again, “You couldn’t pick it up?”

“Well, I dropped it in a drain.” Dove couldn’t help but roll her eyes at this. This just sounded worse and worse the more they tried to explain it to him. At least no one was dead yet.

Her heart sank as she folded her arms in front of her chest, her focus shifted with everyone else’s as the men moved slowly around camp. She knew that Daryl and his brother were close but, shit. She didn’t expect to see him cry for even a second. One of her hands flew up to cover her mouth as she looked down at her feet.

She wasn’t surprised when Daryl shouted. “Hell will all y’all. Just tell me where he is so’s I can go get em.”

What truly shocked her was Lori. The older woman spoke up from her spot by the door at this. “He’ll show you. Won’t you?” She almost insisted with just her words as she locked eyes with her husband.

Dove was torn between following Lori back into the RV or following after Rick as the conflict came to a close. She, instead, chose to check on Carol and Sophia. Her steps were quiet as she walked up the steps to the RV. Dove slid into the seat at the table opposite of her family and reached a hand out to stroke Sophia’s arm. “Hey, bug. You were real brave out there today,” Dove spoke softly as Sophia lifted her head from her mother’s arms.

Sophia sniffled and rubbed her eyes before she looked between the two sisters. “I was really scared,” the young girl whispered.

Dove smiled a little and nodded her head. “I was too, bug. But you did the right thing by runnin like that. Hell, I don’t think either of us knew you could run that fast!” Carol chuckled softly at this as she stroked the young girl’s hair.

“She’s right, Sophia. You kept yourself safe. That was the right thing to do.” Carol kissed the top of her daughter’s forehead before she whispered for her to do something that sounded a lot like ‘go check on Carl’.

Dove drummed her fingers on the table as her thoughts raced through her head. Carol’s voice finally pulled her out of her own head. “You want to go with them, don’t you.” Carol stated in a hushed voice.

Dove’s eyes shot up. Her hazel eyes widened a little bit as she felt color rush to her cheeks. “I…I was thinking about it.”

Carol clicked her tongue and shook her head. “I don’t want my sister out there dyin’ for someone like Merle Dixon.” Her voice didn’t raise above a whisper, though she didn’t sound pleased at all.

Dove rolled her eyes at this. “That’s not what I was thinking of!”

“Then what were you…”

Dove cut her older sister off as she reached out and took her hand, “What if that was me up there, huh? Or you? Would you want me to just leave you up there like that to die?” Dove hissed. “It’s the right thing to do, Carol. Merle or not, it’s the right thing to do.”

Carol’s eyes widened slightly as she took in her sister’s words and nodded her head slowly. “If that’s what you want to do, I can’t stop you. But I just want you to be careful. I don’t want to be explaining to Sophia why her aunt isn’t around anymore.”

A small smirk graced Dove’s face as she squeezed Carol’s hand gently. “Oh please. I’m always careful.”

It was Carol’s turn to roll her eyes as Dove rose from her seat, kissed her older sister on the top of her head, and descended the stairs out of the RV.

Dove looked around camp before spotting Daryl by the fire. She took a long deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth before trudging forward. “Hey, you alright?” _Dumb question._

“What kinda stupid question is that,” Daryl snapped at her.

Dove raised both her hands in front of her, a tired expression on her face. “Right. Guess I deserved that, it was pretty fucking stupid huh.”

Daryl just stared at her for a moment. He had the type of eyes that made her uneasy sometimes; eyes that could stare right into your soul if you’d let them. “What do you want?”

Dove let out a heavy sigh as she watched Carol approach her laundry station out of the corner of her eye. She stood up a little straighter and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I wanna go with you and Rick. Try to bring back Merle. I figure the more people, the better. Plus, y’all might need someone to balance out all the testosterone in that car.”

Daryl stared at her again for a few seconds before scoffing at her. “Don’t need no one else out there, especially not you. Can you even shoot a gun?”

Dove grinded her teeth together as she nodded her head slowly. “Well, excuse me. I may not know how to shoot a gun but I am just as capable as Andrea and Jacqui and they go out into the city all the time! Give me a blunt object and I can take out any walker just as good as a gun, I bet.” Her hands were shaking as she unfolded her arms and shoved her hands in her pockets.

“Alright.” Daryl turned his attention from her.

Dove’s jaw almost dropped in shock as she stood still. “Excuse me?”

Daryl turned back to face her, eyes narrowed slightly. “You heard me, girl. You’re grown, you wanna go? Can’t stop ya. Just don’t expect to get your ass saved.”

“Oh don’t worry, I won’t,” a serene smile was on Dove’s face now.

Shane would definitely have to learn to hold his tongue if they were going to bring Merle back as he called Merle a “douchebag”.

Daryl pointed at the man, “Hey, you better watch what you say!”

Shane nodded his head all sincerely before uttering, “No no. Douchebag’s what I meant.”

Dove rolled her eyes and brought the palms of her hands up to rub her eyes, “Dear god what did I do to deserve this.”

Lori spoke up from her seat by what would be that night’s fire. “So what? You and Daryl, that’s your big plan?”

Carol eyed Dove for a moment before the group’s attention shifted to Glenn. “Oh come on!”

Rick spoke, “You know the way. You’ve been there before. In and out, no problem! You said so yourself.” He was right. Glenn wasn’t shy about telling everyone in the group how well he knew the city and he had dug his own grace.

“That’s just great. Now you’re gonna risk three men?” Shane scoffed.

T-Dog spoke up next, “Four.”

Daryl scoffed, “My day just gets better and better, don’t it?”

Dove rolled her eyes, “Might as well get this out of the way now and make it five.”

Dale glanced between them all and nodded his head. “That’s five.”

Shane shook his head and began to pace a little bit. “You’re putting every single one of us at risk. Just know that, Rick. C’mon. You saw that walker! It was here. It was in camp,” Shane lectured. “They come back, we need every able body we’ve got. We need em to protect camp.”

Rick nodded his head, “Sounds to me like what you need is more guns.”

Dove’s head was spinning. Sophia shuffled her feet as Dove walked over to them. She knelt in front of the girl, taking her hands in her as the others talked about the guns. “Now you listen to me, alright? I’m gonna be just fine! I promise. I always am. But I need you to promise me something too okay?”

Sophia nodded her head and listened intently. “I need you to look out for your mama until I get back, okay? Just make sure everything’s alright. Hold down the fort for me. Promise?” She released Sophia’s hands and held a pinky out to her.

Sophia locked her pinky with her aunt’s before she wrapped her arms around her neck in a hug. “Be safe.”

Dove kissed her niece on the forehead before standing up and brushing off her knees. “Be safe, Carol.” Dove hugged her sister tightly before she turned to see what was going on.

Dove lifted herself into the back of the van, her eyes were beginning to glaze over from boredom as she waited before she almost leapt out of her skin at the sound of a horn honking. From the driver’s seat, Glenn let out a startled shout as Daryl stepped on the horn again. “C’mon let’s go!”

Dove rubbed her temples and muttered to herself before placing a hand on the crowbar that she’d managed to sweet talk out of Jim. She would definitely have to make sure that she made it back now.

The young woman blew a kiss to her family as the door to the back of the van was slammed shut and they pulled away.

~

It was oddly silent on the way to the city. Dove positioned herself so she could see out the front windshield. “This is the first time I’ve left camp in the past two months.” She whispered to Glenn and Rick.

Rick turned his head, a sympathetic look on his face. “You might not want to look, then. Might be a bit of a shock. Trust me on that one.”

Dove took in the man’s words for a moment before she turned and faced the back of the van again.

Daryl finally spoke up for the first time since they started on the road. “He best be alright.”

T-Dog sighed. “The only thing that’s getting through that door is us. He’s fine.”

The van finally lurched to a stop and Glenn called back, “We walk from here.”

Dove groaned as she pulled herself to her feet and hopped out of the back of the van. “Oh shit, I’m getting old.” She mumbled to T-Dog as he hopped down next to her.

T-Dog shook his head at her. “You’re getting old? Just wait ‘til you hit 30.”

Dove laughed quietly as she took off down the train tracks after the rest of the group.

Rick paused as they stepped through a space in the gate that led from the tracks to the road. “Merle first or guns?”

Daryl snapped. “Merle! We ain’t even havin this conversation.”

Dove shook her head and motioned towards Daryl with her free hand, the other still tightly gripping the crowbar. “I’m with him on this. I mean a human life or ammo?”

Rick stared at both of them, clearly trying to keep his cool “We are having this conversation. You know the geography, it’s your call.” He turned to Glenn as the group began to walk.

“Merle’s closest. The guns would mean doubling back.” Glenn stated and Dove wasn’t sure if he was lying or not, but she was grateful for that nonetheless.

Her hazel eyes seemed to take in everything that had happened to Atlanta as they walked through the city. The city she had worked in and know so well was practically gone in a matter of weeks. It made her chest feel tight to see everything, but she knew she couldn’t stop moving.

She stepped lightly into the department store behind T-Dog and in front of Glenn as she went. She stopped, crowbar raised as a walker made it’s way through the aisles of the store. Daryl didn’t waste any time shooting the thing through the head.

Glenn moved forward and directed them to a staircase. It was a lot farther up than it looked, or maybe she was out of shape, but the steps were seeming to take their toll on her as they worked their way towards the roof.

The men reached the last landing as Dove rounded the corner just a few steps behind them. She took the last few steps slowly as she watched Daryl kick the door open after the chain was finally cut.

Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong. She observed as she ran up the last few steps out onto the roof with the others. Merles Dixon was not a quiet man and he surely would’ve reacted to a door being kicked the fuck open.

Daryl’s screams for his brother turned into screams of panic. Dove’s heart dropped as she stepped out onto the roof behind Glenn and she saw it. A hand flew up to cover her mouth as she fought back the urge to vomit. Merle’s hand laid there on the ground next to a bloody hacksaw but Merle Dixon the man was gone.


	5. A plan

Dove felt the blood drain from her face. Her stomach turned as she closed her eyes to keep from spilling the already minimal contents of her stomach onto the rooftop. A sudden shout followed by a click caused her eyes to shoot open. The brunette nudged her way past Glenn as she stared down at the other men in their group, weapons all pulled on each other except for T-Dog. Her heart sank before she heard Rick’s voice. “Drop it. Or I swear I’ll do it. I don’t care if every walker in the city hears it.”

There was an audible exhale from Glenn as the crossbow was lowered, but the way Daryl stared at T-Dog still made Dove uneasy. She stood on the edge of the platform as Daryl finally spoke. “Ya got a do-rag or something?” Much to her surprise, T-Dog reached into his pocket in order to provide Daryl with a blue bandana.

Finally feeling safe enough to descend, Dove to the few steps down to the rooftop slowly. Backpack straps clutched tight in her hand as the cool metal almost dug into the palm of her right hand, she came to a stop between T-Dog and Rick. It was like a train crash, you want to look away but you can’t.

“I guess the saw blade was too dull for the handcuffs,” Daryl spoke as he picked up his brother’s hand in a surprisingly delicate way, “Ain’t that a bitch.”

“I mean if I ever saw anything that looked like the definition of ‘ain’t that a bitch’ it might be that hand,” Dove whispered to Rick. Her stomach lurched again and she swallowed hard as she watched the hand be deposited in Glenn’s backpack. Glenn didn’t look pleased, but it wasn’t like any of them were going to stop Daryl Dixon anytime soon.

“Must have used a tourniquet. Maybe his belt? Would have been much more blood if he didn’t,” Daryl pointed towards the ground and Dove’s eyes scanned the fresh blood stains. Daryl began to walk off and with a nod from Rick, the others followed.

“I’m just going to pretend that Merle Dixon’s hand isn’t in my backpack right now,” Glenn said through gritted teeth as T-Dog walked off to collect Dale’s tools.

“I’m tellin’ you right now, if that shit starts stinkin’, I’m taking it out and using it for batting practice,” Dove shook her head. “Man this fuckin sucks.”

Daryl’s sudden shouts for his brother were definitely startling. Not only for the volume, but for the fact that they didn’t know if there were any walkers in the building that might hear him. She prayed there weren’t any.

As they walked into a room and saw two walkers down for the count, Dove let out an appreciative whistle.

“Had enough in him to take these two out one handed,” Daryl said as they all surveyed the room.

“That’s one tough son of a bitch,” Dove mumbled as she tiptoed past on of the walkers on the ground.

“Toughest asshole I ever met. Feed him a hammer, he’d crap out nails,” Daryl nodded as he reloaded his crossbow.

Dove walked slowly around the room, a quick peek out the window showed her there was nothing to see outside except the walkers roaming. Not that she expected much different.

“Any man can pass out from blood loss, no matter how tough he is,” Rick raised his gun and began to walk through the room.

“Plus, he was probably running on pure adrenaline. He might have crashed at some point. But like you said. Toughest asshole you ever met, right?” Dove raised an eyebrow at Daryl as she went to walk past him into the next room. “I mean I’m sure he’s fine,” her apology was lost as Daryl clenched his jaw, shook his head, and walked forward into the next room.

“Nice going,” Glenn shot her a thumbs up as he came up next to her.

“Shut up,” Dove grunted and stomped ahead, not wanting to fall behind too much.

~

The smell from the stove hit her before she even entered the room. Dove coughed and covered her mouth.

T-Dog covered the lower half of his face, “God what is that?”

Dove’s answer was muffled through her hand, “Burnt skin.” She caught the wary glance of her friend and shrugged. “What? I used to work in a crisis unit right out of college. Saw a lot of shit. But the smells would always be the thing that got me,” she shivered slightly as she stepped into the room just in time to see Rick approaching the stove.

Glenn approached from the side asking what it was and Rick just confirmed her suspicions. “Skin. He cauterized the stump.” That was it. Dove retched and ducked back out of the room. The contents of her stomach spilled out on the floor in front of her as she placed her hands on her knees to recover.

She heard footsteps approach and held a hand out into the room. “’m fine. Just give me a second.” Another cough echoed through the hallway before she was able to straighten up and reenter the room as she wiped her face on the sleeve of her shirt. “Sorry…”

The looks she got ranged from annoyed to sympathetic before Daryl shook his head and broke the silence. “He ain't dead. Nothin can kill Merle but Merle.”

Dove had to appreciate how much faith the man had in his brother. It was admirable. Just like she had to admire the fact that, in spite of an injury that could take another man out, Merle Dixon had somehow made it out of the building.

“Why the hell would he do that,” Glenn squinted at the bright light from the broken window.

“Why wouldn’t he? He’s out there alone as far as he knows,” Daryl mused as he pulled back from the window.

“You call that surviving? What are his odds out there,” T-Dog motioned towards the window.

“He’s right. Any sane man would assume that people who left him chained to the roof wouldn’t come back. Not that ya’ll didn’t have your reasons,” Dove shifted from foot to foot as T-Dog stared at her. She didn’t mean anything by it, but to her it seemed like nothing but facts.

“You couldn’t kill em,” Daryl stepped up to Rick. “Not so worried bout a dumb dead bastard.”

“What about 1,000 dumb dead bastards,” Rick snapped back. “Different story?”

“Take a tally, do what you want. I’m gonna go get him.” Daryl went to march off before Rick was able to stop him.

Dove’s wide eyes met Glenn’s shocked gaze as the two men argued about whether Daryl was going on not.

“You can’t stop me,” Daryl practically shouted.

The next thought that went through Dove’s head was that maybe Rick was actually a good cop as he was able to empathize with the other man. “He’s family, I get that. I went through hell to find mine. I know exactly how you feel.” It actually seemed to get through as Daryl stopped pacing like a caged animal. “He won’t get far with the injury. We could help you check a few blocks around but only if we keep a level head.”

T-Dog spoke as the attention turned to him, “Alright but only if we get those guns first. I’m not roaming the streets of Atlanta with just my good intentions.”

Rick turned his head and nodded towards Dove. The young woman paused for a moment. “T’s right. I’m in but…I mean if it comes down to it, a gun is much faster than a crowbar and I would just feel a lot safer if we got the guns first.” Her hazel eyes glanced towards Daryl and she furrowed her eyebrows. “But I do want to help you find your brother. Because if it was my sister, I wouldn’t stop lookin until I knew she was dead.”

The expression on Daryl’s face was unreadable as he nodded his head. “Alright. But we best go get those guns, then. Don’t want Merle bleedin out,” his eyes narrowed at Rick again before he shouldered his crossbow. This might be the most agreeable that they had ever seen him, even if he still looked like he was ready to fight.

~

The five of them had settled down in another room so that Glenn could look at the map. He knew where the guns were and he knew the city best. Dove had perched herself on the edge of a desk and it was there she sat, legs crossed, when Glenn mentioned his plan about going out to find the guns. Alone.

Rick immediately interrupted, “You’re not doing this alone.” Dove’s hands shook as she ran a hand down her face.

“Even I think it’s a bad idea and I don’t even like you much,” Daryl agreed.

“It’s a good idea,” Glenn interjected from his spot on the floor.

Dove threw a thumbtack from the desk in his direction. “It’s a fucking awful idea! What do you got a death wish or somethin’,” she hissed at the younger man as she bounced her leg and shook her head.

“If you just hear me out,” Glenn almost pleaded. She couldn’t even believe they were having this discussion. “If we go out in a group, we’re slow. We draw more attention. If I’m alone, I can move fast.”

She hated the fact that he sounded right. She tuned out the mapping of the city until she heard it. “That’s where Daryl, Dove, and I will go.” Her head snapped up as she looked across at Daryl. He looked equally confused.

“Why me?”

“You’re crossbow is quieter than his gun,” Glenn shrugged his shoulders.

Dove sighed, hopped down from the desk, and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Yeah but why _me_?”

Glenn stared up at her, “Next to me, you’re the fastest. I mean you played sports.”

“Yeah like ten years ago in high school!” Dove rolled her eyes.

“But, you’re fast. If things go wrong, you run for the guns. They're the most important thing.” Glenn pointed to the map on the floor.

Dove’s eyes scanned the crudely drawn diagram of the streets with narrowed eyes before finally letting out a sigh. “Alright. I guess I’m in.”

“While they wait here in the alley,” Glenn placed a gum wrapper on the board, “I run up the street, grab the bag.” He then explained the positioning of the others in the group. It sounded way too easy and usually when things sound that easy, they aren’t. “Whichever direction I go, I got you in both places to cover me.” Dove nodded her head in appreciation as he finished his explanation.

“Hey kid,” Daryl finally spoke up, “What’d you do before all this?”

Glenn squinted, “Delivered pizzas. Why?”

Dove’s eyes widened as she let out a quiet snort of laughter before she nodded her head. “Makes sense. Gotta learn the backstreets to make those thirty minutes or less, ain’t that right?”

~

The ladder that they had to climb down was less than ideal. Dove sighed as she looked down at it before she held a hand out in front of Glenn. “Uh uh. Didn’t you ever hear of ladies first? Plus, I don’t exactly feel like having anyone check out my ass,” she held two fingers up to her eyes before turning her hand to point at the two men. She swung her leg over the edge of the building and placed a foot on the top rung of the ladder as she heard Daryl speak up.

“Not much to check out,” he said just loud enough for her to hear.

Dove smirked wickedly for a moment. “Then check this out,” she raised her middle finger at both of them before she began her descent.

She heard Glenn say something about being nice to Daryl before beginning his own descent. Wouldn’t that be the day.

A few rungs from the ground, Dove hopped off the ladder and landed with a quiet grunt before she stepped to the side.

Glenn stepped past her once they were all on the ground. “C’mon,” he motioned down the alley.

Dove followed close behind Daryl, crowbar raised slightly as she stood next to the dumpster. She still didn’t like this.

“You got some balls for a Chinaman,” Daryl stated.

“I’m Korean,” Glenn corrected.

“Is now really the time for political correctness,” Dove whispered.

Then Glenn was off. Dove moved forward slightly before she felt a tight grip on her arm. Her knees hit the ground as she was pulled behind the dumpster, a retort lost on her lips as Daryl motioned for her to keep quiet. As quietly as she could, Dove moved to position herself between Daryl and the wall. Back against the dumpster, she said in a barely audible whisper, “What the fuck was that?”

“Someone’s comin,” Daryl whispered just as quietly. Before she could even think about anything else, he had jumped to his feet, crossbow raised.

“Whoa don’t shoot me,” another voice shouted as Dove jumped to her feet, “What do you want!”

“I’m looking for my brother. He’s hurt real bad, you seen em?” Daryl didn’t lower his crossbow. Dove’s gaze shifted quickly between the two men. Or rather, Daryl and the boy.

Suddenly the boy shouted in Spanish.

“Shut up! You’re gonna bring the geeks down on us! Answer me,” Daryl growled as he approached with the crossbow. Dove stepped out from behind the dumpster.

“Daryl stop it! He doesn’t know what you’re talking about,” she snapped at him. She hoped she was right. All of a sudden, the boy wouldn’t stop screaming for help. Dove ran towards Daryl just in time to see him hit the boy in the face with the crossbow. “Ah, shit.”

“Shut up,” Daryl repeated as he held a hand over the boy’s mouth. A yelp of surprise slipped through Dove’s lips as two men came barreling down the alley. The shoulder of one of the men connecting with her own as he ran past her. Her back slammed against the wall, the world started to spin as she hit her head. The crowbar was wrenched from her hand and she watched as the two men started to beat Daryl.

A quick burst of adrenaline hit her like a truck and she mumbled a quiet, “Motherfucker,” as she stumbled to her feet. The one closest held her crowbar in his hands. She took two quick steps towards him and grabbed the crowbar, her hands wrapped around the man’s own. “Stop it,” she grunted through gritted teeth as the man fought to get control of the crowbar back. The woman’s nails dug into his fingers and she thought she had it for a second before she felt the air leave her lungs. An elbow to the stomach sent her reeling back. 

A commotion near the entrance to the alley stopped the two men. Her eyes went wide as she saw him. She was hoping he would have to take the other alley. One of the men screamed, “There’s the bag! Take it, take it.”

Dove shook her head and attempted to stumble to her feet again, the crowbar was close by. She thought about throwing it, but then the screams of one of the men drew her attention back. Daryl was up on his knees. He had shot the guy right in the ass. Any other time, she might have laughed. Glenn’s screams for help chilled her to the bone as she scrambled to regain her footing. Even when she did, the elbow to the stomach was really messing with her. “Glenn, run!” But it was useless, because they already had him. She was hot on Daryl’s heels as the car pulled away from the alley with Glenn and the men inside.

“Come back here! You sumbitches,” Daryl shouted as he started to pull the gate shut.

Dove tried to slip through the hole in the gate. She wanted to run after the car, run after Glenn. It was stupid and she wasn’t thinking straight, but she couldn’t let her friend die. A strong grip on her arm was the only thing that made her stop. She spun around, a wild look in her eye and met Daryl’s angry gaze as he shook his head. Dove’s attention turned back to the gate as the walkers began to pile against it. She couldn’t even hear the car anymore.

Glenn was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to take a second and thank you guys for the support and kind words for the story so far! I've had a few ideas for writing a walking dead story over the past few years but this is the first idea that really stuck out to me once I started thinking more about it, so I'm just really glad you're all enjoying it so far!


	6. Rescue

Glenn couldn’t be gone there was no way. There was no time to really process what happened before Daryl’s attention immediately turned back to the boy. Dove lunged forward and tried to grab Daryl’s arm, but was only able to grasp his shoulder tightly as he swung at the boy. She dug her heels into the ground as she heard Rick and T-Dog approach. “Stop it,” Rick shouted.

Dove nodded quickly and stepped aside as Rick grabbed Daryl. The two of them pushed back further into the alley. T-Dog looked confused as ever but Dove just pointed. “Grab him!” She motioned towards the boy who looked ready to make a break for it.

“I’m gonna kick your nuts up in your throat,” she heard Daryl shout as she marched over and grabbed the boy by the wrist. Her head was pounding.

“Let me go!” The boy shouted.

T-Dog shoved him back against the wall, “Chill out!”

“They took Glenn! That little bastard and his little bastard homie friends,” Daryl yelled as he paced like an animal. Rick looked back quickly before he turned his attention back to Daryl.

“He’s not making it up,” Dove called over to Rick, “His friends took Glenn…and tried to get the guns.”

Daryl pointed over Rick’s shoulder. “I’m gonna stomp your ass, kid.”

Dove felt her anxiety rising as the chaos ensued around her. Then she heard Rick yell for them to move and the boy was pulled from her grip by T-Dog. “C’mon! Let’s go!” She followed as fast as she could. Part of her still wanted to raise absolute hell and just run down the street to try to get Glenn back, but that just sounded like more of a death wish than anything had in the past few weeks.

She realized once they were inside that her hands were empty. “Shit!” She stopped in the middle of the hallway. T-Dog shoved the boy against the wall again as he turned to scrutinize her.

“Why’d you stop,” he hissed back down the hall.

Dove threw her hands up in the air before she rested them on the back of her head, “The crowbar! I promised Jim I was gonna…” She trailed off as Rick and Daryl rounded the corner. The weapon was shoved roughly back into her hands as the two of them walked past her. More stomped in Daryl’s case.

“C’mon. I meant what I said. No one’s savin your ass. Better not drop that shit again, girl,” Daryl called over his shoulder after her. Dove sucked in a deep breath as she wrapped her fingers tightly around her weapon again.

It was hard to keep up with a fast moving group when your head was pounding. Dove entered the room and her gaze fell on the boy seated in a chair. “I ain’t telling you nothing,” was the response he gave to whatever they had asked him. This was going great.

T-Dog looked away from the boy, back at Daryl. “What the hell happened back there, man?” He had a right to ask. There hadn’t been much time to explain.

“I told you! This little turd and his douchebag friends came out of nowhere and jumped me! Damn near knocked bird out tryin to beat the shit out of me too,” Daryl glared at the boy as he paced.

Dove narrowed her eyes as the boy replied, “You’re the one who jumped me _, puto_. Screamin bout trying to find his brother like it’s my damn fault.”

“Yeah? And your guys ganged up on him with weapons. On top of that, it was two on one. He tried to ask you a question, you didn’t answer. So I think it’s best you start answerin,” Dove pointed to crowbar in the boy’s direction. A warning look from Rick only caused her to shake her head and set the weapon down. Eyes not leaving the boy, she leaned up against the side of the desk as she chewed on the inside of her cheek.

“They took Glenn. Could’ve taken Merle too,” Daryl attempted to reason with the others. On one hand, she could see how it made sense. On the other, it definitely seemed like he was reaching for any possibility that his brother could be alive and not bleeding out in the street somewhere.

“Merle? What kind of hick name is that,” the boy snickered, “I wouldn’t name my dog Merle.” Dove pursed her lips and shared a worried yet amused look with T-Dog for a moment before Daryl lashed out. This time, he aimed a kick right for the boy’s head. The brunette really had to admire the sheriff’s reflexes, especially when it came to keeping the angry redneck from beating someone.

Instead of staying back, Daryl marched right past Rick and began digging in Glenn’s backpack. Dove straightened up and tilted her head to the side as she observed what was happening. “Want to see what happened to the last guy that pissed me off,” Daryl said. His tone was eerily calm as he turned to the side so they could see what he was holding. It was the do-rag he had borrowed from T-Dog.

“Oh Jesus Christ,” Dove whispered as she brought a hand up to cover her mouth. She fought back a laugh as Daryl threw the severed hand right into the boy’s lap. She couldn’t understand why she found it funny, but if she had to venture a guess it would probably be the stress.

The boy screamed as he threw himself out of the chair and onto the floor. “Start with the feet this time,” Daryl still sounded amazingly calm as he gripped the boy up by the collar. Rick took advantage of the situation, he was really good at playing good cop.

“We just want to talk to your friends,” he said calmly as he got down to the boy’s level,” See if we can work something out.”

Daryl leaned over to pick up the hand off the ground as Dove spoke up again from behind the desk. “We don’t wanna have to let him cut your feet off, but if you don’t talk to us or tell us anything,” she shrugged her shoulders, “We just might not be able to stop him.” She smiled at the boy. The boy’s eyes flickered nervously between all of the others in the room.

He gulped and nodded his head slowly. “Alright. Just keep that crazy _puto_ away from me!” It was almost sad to see the way the boy almost plead with Rick, but it was worth it. They were going to get their answers.

~

A little while later, Dove was seated alongside a brick wall; dark eyes locked on the boy as he sat away from the rest of them. She found herself feeling bad for the boy. Odds were he had no idea what was going on when Daryl started yelling about Merle and yet he found himself in this insanity with them. Dove’s attention shifted to Rick as he spoke up. “You ready?” He stared at her for a moment before she nodded.

The brunette nodded her head as she looked down at the gun that had been placed in her hand. It made her nervous as hell just holding the thing.

Daryl narrowed his eyes at the boy again as he threatened to put an arrow in his ass. T-Dog shook his head as the kid retaliated with, “G’s gonna take that arrow out of my ass and shove it up yours. Just so you know.”

“G?” Rick questioned as he finally turned his attention back to their hostage.

“Guillermo. He’s the man here.”

Dove rolled her eyes as she rested her back against the wall. “Some man he is. Sendin a kid out to do his dirty work and shit.”

Rick hummed in agreement before loading his gun. “Let’s go see Guillermo.”

Dove stood as she watched Daryl disappear through the window.

There was a moment of silence before either one of the lookouts spoke. “We don’t tell Carol about what a shit show this was or I’ll be the next one handcuffed except this time to a fucking car. Deal?” She turned her head, a serious expression on her face.

T-Dog pinched the bridge of his nose as he shook his head. “Christ. Deal. Only because Dale doesn’t need to be putting us all on lockdown either.”

Dove smirked as she followed quietly after T-Dog. “Knew you’d see it my way.”

Once they were in their positions, Dove peeked over the edge of the building. “Holy shit that’s a lot of people,” she mumbled as she looked through the scope of her gun.

“If this goes south, I say we book it,” T-Dog whispered. The only response he got was a gentle slap on the back of the head.

Finally, the other man looked in their direction as he followed Rick’s gaze.

“Make the trade. Please,” T-Dog practically prayed.

There was a shout from down below and she saw Rick’s gaze go up toward the roof of the building. Dove’s attention snapped in the same direction and her stomach dropped. She gripped the handle of the gun tighter as she bit down on her tongue hard to keep from shouting. Glenn was alive at least for now.

“Fuckin bastards,” Dove’s hands began to shake and her ears rang. She couldn’t even pay attention to what was happening with Rick right now. In fact, a shoot out could be happening right under her nose and her only thought might still be about getting Glenn down off that roof safe and alive. T-Dog nudged her arm, finally bringing her attention back to reality.

“Let’s go, cmon.” He didn’t seem happy at all and they were walking away without Glenn.

~

Dove paced the room as Rick slammed the bag of guns onto the table. She chewed on her already bitten thumbnail as she tried to keep herself calm.

“Those guns are worth more than gold. Gold won’t protect your family or put food on the table,” Daryl said. Was he actually trying to reason with someone? “You willing to give that up for that kid?”

That triggered something in Dove’s brain and she stomped over, a finger pointed right in Daryl’s face. “You best take that back, Dixon!”

“What? It’s the truth! You willing to give away something that could keep you or your sister from dyin to save some kid who wanted to put himself on death’s door,” Daryl didn’t back down. She had counted on that.

“You’re damn right I am! I would die for Glenn if I had to! You were about to put both of our asses in the grave when you decided to fight Miguel in that alleyway when you thought he might have Merle. So don’t you dare try to preach to anyone about what we gotta give up for anyone else in the group. You got me,” Dove’s hazel eyes could have burned holes right through Daryl if T-Dog hadn’t stepped in between them. A hand pressed against each of their shoulders as he pushed them away from each other.

“ _Listen_. If I knew he would hold up his end of the deal and give Glenn back, I might agree to it. But you think that Vato across the way is just gonna hand him over?” T-Dog looked right into Rick’s eyes as he said this.

“You calling G a liar,” Miguel piped up from the floor.

“Are you a part of this,” Daryl snapped at him just before he slapped him on the side of the head. Dove gripped the edge of the desk tightly as she struggled to regain her composure. “You want to hold onto your teeth, kid?”

“Question is, do you trust that man’s word,” T-Dog spoke up again.

“No. The real question is, what are you willing to bet on it,” Daryl cut him off before he could say anything else. “Could be more than guns. Could be your life.” Dove glanced over her shoulder and caught Daryl’s eye for a second before he looked away.

“What life I have I owe to him,” Rick stated. “I was nobody to Glenn. Just some idiot stuck in a tank.” Dove stood up straighter, arms crossed in front of her chest. “He could’ve walked away but he didn’t. Neither will I.”

“So you’re gonna hand the guns over,” Daryl was surprisingly calm. Dove felt even more embarrassed about losing her cool as she listened to him actually talk reasonably to others in the group.

“I didn’t say that. There’s nothing keeping you three here. You should get out, head back to camp while it’s still light out,” Rick tried to explain to the others in the room.

“And what do we tell your family,” T-Dog sighed as he closed his eyes.

“We leave you here alone and we go back without you, without guns, without Glenn. Hell, without Merle? What was the point,” Dove shrugged her shoulders as she shifted her gaze to Rick.

The four of them looked around at each other for a moments before Daryl nodded his head. Dove reached over onto the table and grabbed the gun closest to her. She paused a moment before she shoved the crowbar back into the bag in its place. “You know how to shoot that?” Rick questioned as the other men examined their guns.

Dove pursed her lips and looked the gun over for a moment. With a shake of her head, Dove flashed Rick a surprisingly confident smile. “Nope, but I’m countin on your diplomatic talkin to make sure that I don’t have to.”

Rick frowned before he nodded at her. He held his hand out for the gun and she handed it over to him slowly. Dove’s eyes studied his hands as he loaded the gun for her. “Now listen. If it comes down to it, the safety is right here, alright?” Rick showed her and Dove nodded her head. “You remove the safety, place the butt of the rifle against your shoulder, right here. Then you look through the crosshairs to get your target. Then you pull the trigger and pray the kickback doesn’t get you.”

Dove nodded her head as she took the gun from Rick. “Thanks, Sheriff.”

~

Dove followed closely behind Rick as they moved through the courtyard of the building where the Vatos were holed up. She was still praying that they wouldn’t have to actually use their guns, but the way that Daryl shoved the boy through the door didn’t look promising for any of them.

Dove raised her rifle slightly as she followed Rick into the building. She could feel eyes on her as she walked through the doorway and she tried her best not to shiver.

“I see my guns, but they’re not all in the bag,” the leader that Dove recognized from before smirked slightly as he addressed them

“That’s because they’re not yours. I thought I mentioned that,” Rick retorted as he raised his rifle slightly.

“Let’s just shoot these fools right now, ese,” a bald headed man spoke up from next to Guillermo. Dove clenched her jaw as she felt her hands begin to shake. “Unload on their asses, ese.”

“I don’t think you fully appreciate the gravity of the situation,” Guillermo eyed Rick suspiciously. Dove felt some ounce of gratitude for the man. It seemed like he had some sense still, unlike the man that had just threatened to unload on them all.

Rick shook his head at the shorter man, “No, I’m pretty clear.” Rick nodded at Dove. The brunette lowered her gun and took the pocket knife from Rick with a shaking hand. She cut through the tape around Miguel’s arm as quickly as she could before Daryl shoved the boy forward. “You have your man. I want mine.”

For a second, she thought it was over. “I’m gonna chop up your boy. Gonna feed him to my dogs.” Dove felt a hand on her shoulder and a slight shove backwards. She caught Daryl’s gaze out of the corner of her eye as he raised his gun again. She followed suit as she took in a deep breath through her nose. Nothing could ever be easy anymore. “They’re the evilest, nasiest, man-easting bitches you ever saw. I picked em up from Satan at a yard sale.” Dove quirked an eyebrow at the man. He was really trying to put on a show for a guy who seemed so ready to kill them. “I told you how it has to be, are you woefully deaf?” _Yes._

“My hearing’s fine. You said come locked and loaded.” Rick raised his rifle again. Daryl and T-Dog were right behind him, gun’s locked and loaded. Dove’s hands froze in place. Her brain knew what to do but her body wouldn’t listen. She didn’t want to have to shoot someone but she sure as hell wasn’t expecting what happened next.

“Felipe,” an older woman called as she entered the room. Dove’s eyes widened in shock as T turned and pointed his gun in the direction of the new voice.

“Abuela, go back with the others,” the bald man called back at her.

“Dude what the hell is your _grandmother_ doing,” Dove couldn’t help but hiss through gritted teeth at the man. What the fuck was going on. 

“Get that old lady outta the line of fire,” Daryl snapped, though he didn’t lower his gun.

Guillermo just sighed and seemed to roll his eyes before he turned his attention away from them. “Abuela! Listen to your mijo, okay? This is not the place for you right now.” Dove’s head was spinning. He genuinely seemed concerned about the older woman as she continued to walk closer to them despite the many protests.

“Mr. Gilbert is having trouble breathing,” the old lady pleaded with Felipe. “He needs his asthma stuff! Carlito didn’t find it.”

Despite what everyone else seemed to be doing, Dove lowered her gun. Her right hand held rightly to the butt of the rifle as she raised her left hand to cover her mouth. Then it all clicked in her head. There was a reason they didn’t just kill them all in the alleyway. They could have easily killed her, Daryl, and Glenn and made it out with the guns with no issue. But they didn’t want to. They were more like them than Rick or any of them had realized.

“Felipe!” Guillermo shouted and it broke Dove from her train of thought. “Go take care of it! And take your grandmother with you!”

She noticed the change in the bald man’s demeanor almost instantly too as he turned to his abuela. He tried to pull her away, but the old lady wasn’t leaving that easy. “Who are those men? And that girl?” The woman squinted at them and began to walk closer. Felipe tried to plead with her in Spanish again but she didn’t listen. “Don’t you take him. Felipe’s a good boy. He have his trouble but he pull himself together. We need him here.” Dove felt herself choke up a little bit at the old woman’s pleas. She turned her head and locked eyes with T, who looked just as torn as she felt.

“Ma’am. I’m not here to arrest your grandson.” Rick tried to reason with the older woman.

“Then what do you want him for,” she questioned Rick. The sheriff struggled for a moment before Dove spoke up.

“He’s…”

“Well, you see, ma’am,” she stopped for a moment. The brunette woman turned to Rick, who just nodded his head. “Our friend went missing. We think your grandson might be able to help us find him. His name is Glenn…”

“The Asian boy,” the old woman perked up slightly. “He’s with Mr. Gilbert! Come. I show you.” She reached out her hand to Rick and he paused for a moment before taking the old woman’s wrinkled hand in his. Dove could only look on in shock as the two of them started to walk away.

Guillermo closed his eyes, clearly a little frustrated before he waved his hand. “Let em pass.” Dove didn’t wait for the others as she immediately pushed past Felipe and followed as close behind Rick as she could.

She fell back a few steps as they rounded the corner into another courtyard. “Whoa…” Dove caught the eye of Felipe as he walked past her except this time, he smiled a little and nodded his head at her. “This place is amazing.” She whispered to Daryl as she fell into step next to him.

“Better than a quarry for sure,” was the only response she got. They walked up the steps and into another building in silence. Dove peered into the first room they passed as they walked inside just as Rick was taking his hat off. Another old woman was sat on a chair in the room and she turned just as Dove peeked into the doorway. A small smile appeared on the old woman’s face as she waved a hand feebly. Dove waved back slowly as she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was T; with a slight nod, he motioned for her to keep walking.

She couldn’t help but look in every room as they passed. Her heart jumped in her chest as they finally arrived in what had to have been a cafeteria of sorts. There was a little stage in front with a group of people crowded around the front of it and in that group was “Glenn!” Dove shouted. She couldn’t hold in the excitement at seeing him alive for a second longer as she ran forward.

Glenn turned his head just in time for Dove to wrap her arms around his shoulders. “Oh my god, you’re alright!” She whispered as she tried to fight back tears. Glenn chuckled a little bit as he wrapped his arms around her.

“Yeah, I’m more worried about Mr. Gilbert right now. I’m fine,” he assured her.

Dove released Glenn from her grasp, only to place a hand on his shoulders before emotion took over her once again. She leaned forward and placed a kiss on both of his cheeks as Rick and the others approached. “I’m chaining your ass to that god damn RV when we get back, Rhee! I swear it.”

“What the hell is this,” Rick hissed.

“An asthma attack,” Glenn explained. Dove finally turned her attention to the scene in front of her. Her hands slipped into her back pockets as she observed Felipe administering the inhaler. These weren’t bad people at all.

“I though you were being eaten by dogs, man!” T-Dog snapped.

Glenn turned suddenly and all of their gazes followed his until they landed on three little dogs in a bed on the floor.

“Are those…” Daryl raised an eyebrow.

“Chihuahuas?” Dove cut him off. She was quiet for another moment before a hysterical laugh escaped her lips. “Oh Jesus Christ,” she shook her head as she covered her mouth to try to stifle another laugh.

Rick was clearly not as amused as Dove heard him speak to Guillermo, “Can I have a word with you? You’re the dumbest son of a bitch I ever met.”

Dove turned her attention back to Glenn as she pointed a finger at him. “You’re lucky we like you or I would be totally kicking your ass right now.”

Daryl shook his head in amazement as T-Dog let out a deep sigh. Rick interrupted anything either of them had to say as he called out to them from the doorway before he motioned for them to follow him.

“C’mon, Karate Kid. Say goodbye to your little friends, you’re grounded,” Dove said as she grabbed Glenn by the arm and pulled him after her. She thought she heard Daryl let out a snort of laughter.

When the six of them finally reached a more isolated room, Rick questioned Guillermo. “What about the rest of your crew.

“The rest of the Vatos trickled in. They came in to check on their parents or grandparents, they saw how things are here. Most decided to stay,” Guillermo explained. “It’s a good thing too. We need the muscle. The people we’ve encountered since this all started? The worst kind. Plunderers. They like to take things by force.” Dove leaned back against a wall as she listened to him

“That’s not who we are.”

“How was I to know? My people got attacked and you show up with Miguel hostage. Appearances,” Guillermo shrugged.

“I guess the world changed,” T-Dog piped up from his spot on the floor.

“No, it’s the same as it ever was. The weak get taken so we do what we can here.” Guillermo shook his head.

Dove bit her lip as she shook her head. They really were more alike than Dove thought they could ever be when she first met them in the alley way.

“These people here? They all look at me now. I don’t even know why,” Guillermo said.

Dove thought for a moment before speaking. “They probably see that you’re smart. Capable. Plus, there’s no one telling them that they can’t,” she shrugged her shoulders as she ran a hand through her long hair.

Once Rick finished splitting up the guns, they were led to the door. An immense sent of relief rushed through Dove as she realized they were going back to the group. With a final goodbye, the five of them set off in silence towards the box car. It had been a long day and, surprising no one, it was Glenn who broke the silence.

“Admit it. You only came back to Atlanta for the hat,” Glenn teased Rick as Dove let out a snort of laughter.

“And you probably only wanted to come back to steal another car,” she elbowed Glenn in the side gently as she walked alongside him.

“You gave away half our guns and ammo,” Daryl growled from alongside Rick.

“Not nearly half,” Rick corrected him calmly.

“For what,” Daryl snapped back, “A bunch of old farts? How long you think they got left anyway?” Sometimes Dove just really just wanted to grab him by the hair and slam him against a car for being so ignorant.

“How long do any of us have,” Rick retorted.

“Son of a bitch.” Dove shouted as her gaze locked on where the box car should have been.

“Where the hell’s our van,” Daryl sounded dumbfounded.

“Who the hell would take it,” Glenn stared at the empty spot.

“Merle,” Rick snarled.

Dove clenched her jaw and shook her head. “If I ever see that bastard,” but she trailed off as a horrible thought entered her head at the same time Daryl spoke.

“He’s gonna be taking some vengeance back to camp,” Daryl actually sounded worried.

“Then we best get fucking walking because he’s not going to take some revenge on my sister,” Dove frowned as she began to move forward.

Rick nodded his head. “Right. Glenn?”

Glenn rubbed his face before releasing an annoyed grunt. “We can probably make it back by nightfall.”

“Let’s go!” Dove shouted as she slipped through the hole they’d cut in the gate. The only thing on her mind now was getting back to her sister before things got bad.

~

Dove ran behind Glenn as the thought of getting back to Carol was the only thing that kept her moving. Her legs were tired and her lungs were burning, but for the first time all day since Glenn had went missing she thought of her family. A million emotions and thoughts ran through her head as she ran. Guilt, fear, and regret were among the many. While she was happy that they were all able to return safely, she was worried about what had happened while they were gone. What if Ed had done something while she was gone? She was really going to kill him when they got back.

“We’re getting close,” Glenn spoke up as they slowed down.

Dove drew in a deep breath but any reply was lost as gun shots rang through the air. Panic shook her to the core and before anyone could stop her she screamed, “Carol!” Dove was off like a shot in the dark. Her feet carried her faster than she could ever remember running as the screams and gun shots got closer with every second. The metal from the crowbar in her hand dug into her palm as she gripped it tight.

A scream left her throat as she broke through the tree line and brought the claw end of the crowbar right down into a walker’s face. She had never killed one before but there was no time to think. The screaming kept continuing and the gun shots from Rick, Glenn, T-Dog, and Daryl rang out around her. Dove’s brain only seemed to focus on Sophia. She was screaming from somewhere up by the RV. As she looked around, she caught sight of Daryl as he slammed the butt of his gun into a walker’s head over and over.

“Carol,” Dove shouted over the chaos. “Sophia?” She shouted even louder as she saw Carl run forward and hug Rick. Finally she saw them. Carol was crouched next to her, arms protectively around Sophia. A sob escaped her as she stumbled forward towards them. It seemed like it took forever, but she collapsed next to them on her knees and wrapped her arms around both of them. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry I wasn’t here.” The words spilled out through choked sobs as Sophia cried and wrapped both of her arms around her aunt’s waist.

Carol smoothed Dove’s hair out of her face as she stifled a sob. “We’re okay…we’re okay.” Then anything she said was cut off by Andrea’s screaming. It chilled her to the bone as Carol grabbed Dove by the arm and helped her to her feet, Sophia still clung to her waist as the three of them continued to choke back sobs.

“I remember my dream now,” Jim spoke suddenly. Dove turned her gaze from her sister to the older man. “Why I dug the holes.” Then he said nothing else. He didn’t have to because as she finally took in her surroundings, Dove could only see bodies littering the ground around them.


	7. Aftermath

Dove sat awake and stared out the window of the RV. Her body was tired and her legs ached from the trek back from Atlanta, but she couldn’t close her eyes without seeing her friends, even those who were alive, die right in front of her. Sophia was asleep, her legs thrown across Dove’s lap as she rested her head on her mother. Carol had cried herself to sleep.

Then, in what seemed like the blink of an eye, the sun was rising over the mountains. Her hazel eyes scanned her surroundings as she straightened herself into a sitting position from where she had apparently fallen asleep. Lori smiled gently at her as she patted her on the shoulder again. It was her that had woken her up. “How long was I asleep for,” Dove mumbled as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

“Not long. Maybe an hour or so,” Lori sighed as she sat down next to her. “How’re they doin?”

Dove turned her head to look at the older woman as she scrutinized her for a moment before she responded. “Fine, I think. At least someone’s getting some shut eye. How’s Carl?” Dove ran a hand through her hair as she fought back a yawn.

“He’s still sleepin. Glenn was lookin for you, but he didn’t want to wake you,” Lori added.

Dove nodded as she moved Sophia’s legs off her lap slowly. Lori stood up first and held out a hand to the younger woman. With a mumbled ‘thanks’, Dove allowed herself to be helped into a standing position. As she descended the steps, she spotted Glenn. He was close to the woods with Daryl of all people. Close to where Carol’s tent was and that made Dove’s stomach turn. Lori rubbed her shoulder before she turned on her heel and walked off to check on Carl.

It felt like the 20 or so steps it took to get to Glenn took hours. Her hands on her hips, Dove looked at both the men and nodded. “So, what’s up? Couldn’t come wake me up yourself?” She attempted to joke with Glenn.

His face was paler than she thought she’d seen him before. “No…. I mean. I didn’t want to wake you up for this.”

The confusion must have been clear on Dove’s face as Daryl spoke up suddenly. “We gotta let your sister know what happened and pizza boy here thought it would be best to let you know first”

Dove didn’t know how to feel. That could only mean one thing, right? She pushed past both of them and pulled open the flap of the tent. A sense of regret immediately washed over her as she took in the sight before her. She never thought she would feel any sense of pity for Ed Peletier, but here she stood. He still deserved everything he got and when Dove finally tore her eyes away, she had no tears in her eyes. Instead she turned to Glenn and whispered in his ear. “Do me a favor? Wake Carol up and bring her out here? Leave Sophia to sleep, she doesn’t need to know yet.

Glenn eyed her warily for a moment before setting off to his task. She watched as he disappeared into the RV. Dove finally spoke up again, “You want help movin him? You’re gonna put all the ones out that got bit, right?” She peeled her eyes away from the sight of her sister crying and being comforted by Jacqui to look at Daryl.

Shock was evident on his face, but only for a moment as he frowned once again. “Sure you can handle it?”

Dove narrowed her eyes at him, “I don’t see anyone else offering to help you with this one, Dixon. Besides, I probably should. You get his arms, I’ll get his legs,” and before there was a response, Dove had ducked her head into the tent and began to get a grip on her brother-in-law’s legs. Her stomach turned as another thought rushed through her head. She only wished she was the one who got to put an end to all the suffering he’d put her family through.

~

A few hours later, the sun was up. Most of them sat around the fire as Daryl, T-Dog, and Glenn went to work putting the walkers-to-be down before they could turn. Rick broke the silence. “She been like that all night?”

Lori nodded as Dove looked up from her spot next to Carol. “She won’t even talk to us. She hasn’t moved at all.”

Shane sighed, “We can’t just leave Amy like that. We have to deal with it…like with all the others.”

“I’ll tell her how it is,” Rick nodded solemnly.

Dove shook her head as she rubbed Carol’s back. “I doubt hearing it from one more person will make a difference.” She was proven right almost instantly as she turned to see Andrea pull a gun on Rick. Jesus, it was turning into Lord of the Flies quick as anything. Then Rick did the smartest thing any of them had done in days, he backed up slowly and walked away.

Daryl had seen it too, apparently, and he wasn’t too happy about it.

“You’re seriously gonna let that girl hamstring us? The dead girl’s a fucking time bomb,” he said in what had to be an attempt to reason with them all.

Dove stood; arms crossed in front of her chest. “First of all, it’s Amy. Not dead girl. Second of all, when Rick went over to talk to her? He got a gun pulled on him so unless you have any bright ideas of your own, I think we’re shit out of luck,” she tried to keep her voice down as her anger rose slightly. The last thing they needed was for Andrea to hear their whole conversation.

Rick raised an eyebrow,” So any suggestions?”

Daryl took a step closer to Rick and Dove watched Shane tense up. “Take the shot! Clean, in the brain from here! Hell, I can hit a turkey between the eyes from this distance.” She hated to say anything, but Daryl was kind of making sense. It hurt to even think it. Dove liked Amy. She was a sweet girl, always kind to everyone in camp even when they weren’t kind to her. But if she came back, that wouldn’t be Amy.

“For God’s sakes, let her be,” Lori shook her head. The others seemed to agree and Daryl just scoffed as he turned to go back to his work. Dove stared after him, a frown on her face.

“You got something to say, bird,” Shane spoke up suddenly. His voice cut through Dove like a knife. There was something off about him since Rick got back, almost like he was trying even harder to prove himself.

“What if Daryl’s right,” Dove said and almost instantly regretted it.

Dale frowned in concern, “Did you get any sleep last night? I mean you…”

Dove held a hand up and tried to ignore the worried look on Carol’s face. “No, you listen, Dale! I’m feeling just fine, thank you! But all I’m saying is that Amy go bit, right? So, Amy will turn if we let her sit there too long. So what? We let her lay out in the sun, get all toasty and warm for when she turns and then what? Andrea chokes up when she turns, can’t shoot her, then she gets bit.”

Lori ran a hand down her face and shook her head, “We aren’t shooting Amy in the head from this far away. I understand you; I really do! But we need to think about Andrea too.”

A shout from Glenn drew Dove’s attention. She grabbed Carol’s shoulder as Daryl started to yell again. Something about them leaving Merle for dead. “You had this coming!”

Dove’s hand shook with anger and Carol gave her hand a comforting squeeze before Dove caught sight of Jim. He didn’t look too well, and she couldn’t help but feel some concern for the man. Another pat on Carol’s shoulder and Dove mumbled, “I’ll be back,” then she was off. She approached slowly but was able to hear enough.

Jim was bleeding. Dove froze in place, her feet felt like they were cemented to the floor when Jacqui shouted out, “A walker got him! A walker bit Jim!”

Everyone was shouting. Dove’s head was spinning, but she saw Daryl start to circle like a shark with the damn pickaxe. Then Jim was caught in a hold by T-Dog and Dove couldn’t keep the tears from springing up in her eyes as she saw the big bite mark on Jim’s abdomen.

Dove shook her head as she raised a hand to cover her mouth in shock. Shane walked forward and grabbed Jim’s arm as the man continued to mutter how he was fine. He was okay, there was nothing wrong with him. “Hey, listen. Jim, buddy, just sit right there by the RV. Right there in the shade now, alright? We’re gonna figure this out.” Dove walked forward and placed a hand on Jim’s other arm and nodded at Rick.

“C’mon. I’ll help you sit down. You’re gonna be just fine,” her hazel eyes stayed fixed on her feet as she carefully guided the mechanic to the shade beside the RV. “Do you need anything? Something to eat? A bottle of water,” Dove spoke gently as she helped Jim sit down.

“I’m okay, Sawyer. I’m okay,” was all Jim said. It was like he was trying to convince himself or will it into existence by saying it so many times. If magic were real, maybe he would really be okay. The dead were up and walking now so who’s to say he wouldn’t be able to fix himself.

Dove nodded, a small smile on her face as she rose to her feet to rejoin the others. “Stay cool, Jimbo. I’ll be right back.”

She caught what Dale said as she approached, “Maybe Daryl’s right.”

“You sure you got enough sleep last night, Dale?” Dove couldn’t resist saying the same thing Dale had said to her earlier as she came to a stop between Carol and Daryl.

“Jim’s not some monster or a rabid dog. He’s sick. A sick man,” Rick shook his head. He wasn’t on board with this anymore. “We start down that road, where do we draw the line?”

Dove sighed as she pulled a hair tie from her pocket. As she grabbed her dark hair in her hand and began to weave it into a braid, she nodded. “Right, he only turns into a rabid dog _after_ he bites the dust. He hasn’t done that yet. The real question is, are we gonna give him a chance to turn into a rabid dog? We’ve all seen Old Yeller.”

“Exactly,” Daryl spoke up again, “Line’s pretty clear. Zero tolerance for walkers or those to be.”

One thing that Dove was quickly figuring out about Rick Grimes was that he was a desperate man. Kind, sure, but desperate to still do the right thing. “What if we can get him help?” Dove exchanged a worried look with Carol before she placed a comforting arm around her sister’s shoulders. “I heard the CDC was working on a cure.”

“We all heard that before the world went to hell,” Shane retorted.

“What if the CDC’s still up and running,” Rick attempted to reason with them.

“Even if the CDC is still up and running, and that’s a strong if! You really think we got enough time to get Jim there and get him help before he starts to take advantage of the buffet of people out here,” Dove couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

“Now listen!” Rick raised his voice slightly, “If there’s any government left, any structure at all, they’d protect the CDC at all costs. Right? It’s our best shot. Shelter, protection…”

Shane cut Rick off before he could finish. Even a blind man could see that there was a battle going on deep inside Daryl’s head at that point from the way his face was twitching. Dove’s eyes flickered from the weapon in his hand to the two men arguing. At the mention of Fort Benning, Dove heard Carol let out a quiet, yet annoyed sigh.

“That’s 100 miles in the other direction,” Lori pointed out.

“That is correct, but it’s away from the hot zone,” Shane continued.

“Yeah and you’ve been talking about going to Fort Benning since the first week we got here,” Dove snapped, “If you thought Fort Benning was so good, why didn’t we just head there from the jump once we had a big enough group? The military didn’t seem to be handling it very well at all from how Atlanta looks, anyway.” Dove watched as Shane clenched his jaw and ran a hand through his hair. Rick cut him off before he had a chance to retaliate.

“She’s right. The military was on the front line and they got over run! We go 100 miles for what? The CDC is closer, at least if there’s nothing there maybe it won’t be so bad and we can circle back and head towards Fort Benning, It’s Jim’s only chance,” Rick pleaded.

“You go get some aspirin and do what y’all wanna do,” Daryl started as he began to move towards Jim. Dove’s grip on Carol’s shoulder tightened. “Someone needs to have some balls to take care of this damn problem!” Carol covered her mouth with both hands as Daryl swung the pickaxe up and Rick pointed his gun at the back of Daryl’s head.

“Oh my god, he’s gonna kill him,” Carol whispered as Dove clung to her arm.

Dove’s hands still shook as she watched. “No, I think we’re good.” She flinched as Daryl slammed the pickaxe into the dirt. “No one else needs to die today,” she said in a quiet voice as the two of them began to follow after Rick.

~

Dove approached Daryl slowly. The smell of the bodies was awful from being out in the heat all day, but part of her had to go see what was happening. Maybe things would never be normal again, but the part of her that was the caretaker seemed like it could never shut up. “That was a stupid thing you did back there. Tryin to kill Jim right in front of everyone like that.” Dove raised a hand to shield her eyes from the sun. Daryl only grunted in response before he looked up from the task at hand.

His blue eyes seemed to stare right through her, “You come out here to preach to me, bird? Sounded like you were on my side about havin to put people down before it comes time to actually take action.” He growled before he stepped to the side and swung the pickaxe down into the head of the next person in line. “Didn’t seem too upset bout your family dyin’ neither.”

“Ed ain’t my family, first of all. Only family by circumstance but we never got along. Second of all, I got no tears to cry for wife beaters,” Dove scowled as she glanced down and kicked at Ed’s hand. She didn’t see that Daryl had opened his mouth to respond before he stopped.

Carol approached, quiet as a mouse. Dove drew in a deep breath, her hazel eyes locked on her sister as she waited for her to speak. “I’ll do it. He’s my husband.” Dove’s eyes went wide as she watched her sister try to stifle tears. Daryl looked hesitant; his gaze went to Dove before she simply shrugged her shoulders. The brunette placed a comforting hand on her sister’s shoulder as she watched her take the pickaxe from Daryl.

“Hey…You’ll be okay. I’m right here if you change your mind,” Dove reassured her with a tiny smile before she stepped back, closer to Daryl than she meant to.

She wasn’t sure if Carol’s sobs were for the fact that Ed was dead or for the fact that she was finally getting an emotional release after years of abuse. As Carol finally let the pickaxe come to rest on the ground, Dove walked up behind her sister and wrapped her arms around her. Carol sniffed and raised a hand to wipe her face as the pickaxe was taken from her by Daryl. “You’re alright,” Dove said in an attempt to comfort her sister. “You, me, and Sophia? We’re gonna be just fine now. He can’t hurt you anymore.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you wanna see some meme/vine trash I made about this fic here's this https://youtu.be/wX_77Azjbio


	8. On the road

Dove hated to see Andrea go through waiting for her sister to reanimate. It seemed like the older woman held onto some hope that her sister might not turn like the rest of them. Honestly, Dove couldn’t really blame her for feeling that way. A sharp tug on her sleeve pulled her back to the reality of what was happening. Amy was up and struggling to bite her sister. A gun shot rang out and Dove’s stomach lurched. A quick but horrible thought flashed through her brain; what if one day that was her and Carol? Dove looked at her sister and it seemed like she might have had the same thought. Before she could even say anything, Carol had wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Dove said quietly as she gripped Carol’s shirt. Tears were still rolling down Dove’s face when Sophia came running over. The two women quickly wiped their faces as the little girl approached them.

Sophia sniffled before she latched herself onto Carol’s waist. “I’m scared, mommy. I thought Shane said the monsters didn’t come up this way?”

Carol’s hands shook as she smoothed Sophia’s hair down. “It’s okay to be scared, I’m scared too. But the important thing is, Shane still kept us safe.”

Dove watched with a weary expression on her face as Shane and Rick walked off into the woods. “Hey, bug. I got an idea. Why don’t you and me go pick some flowers to put on Amy’s grave? I think that would be awful nice of us,” she held out a shaky hand.

Carol nodded, “Go on, Sophia. Dove won’t let anything happen to you.”

Sophia took Dove’s hand and the two of them started to walk. Dove carried her pocket knife in her left hand as they walked, finally able to understand what it might have been like for some of her old clients when they said they felt like someone was always watching. It just didn’t feel right.

A tug on her hand brought her to a halt as Sophia stopped and looked down at her feet. “What’s wrong, bug?” Dove knelt down next to Sophia, a worried look on her face.

When Sophia turned and looked at her, her brown eyes were full of tears. “What if the monsters get me and I try to hurt you or mom?” Her voice broke and Dove could swear her heart broke along with it.

The brunette took a deep breath before she took the little girl’s hand in her own. “Listen, Sophia. Nothing like that is going to happen to you, okay? Not now, not ever. I’m gonna keep you safe from the monsters. Your mom is, too.” _She’s kept you safe from worse monsters,_ Dove thought.

Sophia sniffled as the tears flowed down her face. “Promise?”

“I double pinky swear it, even.” Dove winked at her niece before she stood up. “Now c’mon, let’s find something. Even a few weeds is better than nothing.”

~

It could have been the stress of the day or the fact that she still didn’t forgive him for wanting to leave Glenn in Atlanta, but Dove felt the desire to slap Daryl Dixon across the face grow stronger every time she heard him speak. “These people need to know who’s In charge here. What the rules are,” she heard him say to Rick as she walked in a poor excuse of a funeral procession with the others.

“That’s the problem, there are no rules,” Lori spoke up. “We haven’t had one minute to hold onto anything of our old selves. We need time to mourn and we need to bury our dead. It’s what people do.” Dove stared in admiration at the older woman. She didn’t speak up much for the good of the group, but when she did it meant something. She couldn’t help but wonder if the reason why Lori didn’t speak up much was because she knew it would upset whoever was playing leader.

Dove could only stand and watch as Andrea struggled to put her younger sister into the grave. She held Sophia’s hand as they watched the dirt get piled onto her grave and the only thing she could do was toss the flowers onto the grave as they walked past back to the camp.

Her own thoughts caused her to fall behind Carol and Sophia as they walked back to the camper. She heard a crunch on the gravel next to her as someone fell into step next to her and she expected to see Glenn or T when she turned her head, but she frowned when her gaze fell upon the man next to her. “What do you want, Dixon?”

Daryl wiped the sweat from his brow with the bandana from his back pocket as he spoke. “Ya know I’m right about needin rules.”

“What do you want, a medal? Everyone needs rules or else this goes into Lord of the Flies territory faster than you can say Piggy.” Dove rolled her dark eyes. “You were wrong though, we do need to bury our dead. It makes us different from them.”

Daryl snorted, it was his turn to roll his eyes now. “When I bite the dust, I know none of you are gonna cry any tears or dig a hole for my ass. Shit, I don’t want ya to. Just put a fucking bullet between my eyes and call it a day.” Dove stopped at that. Her hands rested on her hips as she squinted to keep the sun from her eyes. “What?” Daryl turned slightly to look back at her.

“Make it a deal as long as you bury me when I die,” Dove started after him again. She kept a few steps behind him but she was still close enough to hear him let out another snort. They were closer to the camp now and it was like the conversation never happened.

Dove saw Carol walk out of the camper with Lori and approached, a hand waved in the air as she walked towards them. “Hey guys, how’s Jim doin?”

Carol shook her head and looked down for a moment, “Not any better. His fever’s getting worse and he’s spitting up blood. Lori and I just brought him some water though.”

Lori nodded her head as she rubbed Carol’s shoulder in an attempt to comfort her, “The best we can do right now is try to keep him comfortable and we’re doing that.”

Dove sighed and ran a hand down her face. “I think I’m gonna go try to talk to him,” she watched as Rick left the RV and Shane approached him. She only caught a moment of their conversation as she walked through them into the RV but that was more than enough for her to know that she wanted nothing to do with it.

“Hey Jimbo,” Dove tapped quietly on the cupboard as she made her way back to the little couch where Jim was set up.

“Sawyer,” Jim coughed as he sat up from what must have been another fit of coughing up blood. Dove’s stomach turned as she walked over and took a seat next to him on the couch.

A sad smile on her face, she patted his hand. “How you feelin, buddy? About ready to get out there and kick some walker ass again like you did last night,” she looked around for a moment before she spotted the cold rag that Carol must have been using for his head.

“I dreamt about it happening. I knew I was gonna get bit,” Jim whispered and Dove stopped right before she touched his forehead. The expression on her face was now one of concern. “I know it sounds crazy, but you believe me right? Did you ever hear about people dreamin about things before they happened?”

A cold shiver ran down her spine in spite of the Atlanta Heat. Dove swallowed before she placed the cold compress on Jim’s head. “I believe you, Jim. I really do.”

~

Glenn shook the folding chair that Dove was sat in as the group reconvened around the firepit. “Any word on where they want to go?” Glenn spoke from behind her.

“Rick wants to go to the CDC pretty bad, and Shane is stuck on Fort Benning as far as I know,” Jacqui stated as she picked at her fingernails nervously. Dove watched as Morales and his wife whispered back and forth for a few moments. She couldn’t help but feel like it was the last time they were going to see some of their friends for a long time.

Footsteps coming out of the woods made everyone stop. Dove sat up in her chair as Shane approached the center of the group. “So there are no guarantees either way, I’ll be the first to say it.” Dove shot a look over at Carol. She looked just as amused as Dove felt. “I’ve known this man a long time. I trust his instincts. I say the most important thing is we need to stay together.” Dove felt Glenn give her bicep a small squeeze from his spot behind her chair. She bit her lip nervously as she only wanted to listen to Shane. Something still didn’t feel right. “For those of you that agree, we leave first thing in the morning.”

Dove felt her eyes grow wide as quiet chatter erupted all over the campsite. Carol leaned over from her spot on the chair and whispered, “We’re going to stay in your tent tonight. Sophia,” the little girl perked up at her mother’s call, “make sure you have everything ready for the morning! You don’t want to be leavin anything behind like you do whenever you stay with Dove.” Dove laughed and ruffled Sophia’s hair.

“Don’t worry, bug. I’ll help you pack.”

That night seemed to go by faster than any of the others before it, but slower at the same time. Dove had whispered to Carol while Sophia slept that it felt like the night before a big field trip where you get so excited and nervous that you can’t sleep. Carol’s only response was a soft kick through the sleeping bag which Dove took as a sign to keep quiet.

In the morning, Dove had volunteered to drive Carol’s car while Carol and Sophia rode with Lori and Carl. Dove twirled the keys around her finger as Shane spoke in front of the group again, some lecture about keeping the chatter clear on the radios. The only thing she took in was the fact that if she needed anything, she should honk her horn one time. She turned her attention to Morales and his family as they spoke. She felt sad about them leaving, sure, but she had never really spoken to them enough to actually feel sad. If anything, she was more worried about what would happen to the kids when they were out there alone. Dove watched as everyone else hugged and said their goodbyes. She only nodded at Morales before he approached and shook her hand. “Stay safe,” he said. Then they were gone.

“Come on. Let’s go.” Shane announced as the group began to file into their cars. Dove kissed Sophia on the head and hugged Carol tight before she turned to look at Glenn. She nodded at him and felt tears spring up in her eyes for a second.

The young man hugged her tight and she let out a quiet laugh. “I’m not going anywhere but a few cars behind you, Glenn. Unless I decide to drive my ass off a cliff or something,” she laughed as she pulled back from the hug and wiped her face quickly.

Glenn’s cheeks were red as he nodded as took his hat off to run a hand through his hair. “I know, but I took a class once where it said that hugs help when you feel stressed and…”

“Wow ok, go join your other best friend in the RV up there. Do me a favor though? Keep an eye on Jim for me?” Glenn nodded at her and she waved at Sophia once again as she walked over and opened the driver’s side door. A voice from the car behind her made her let out a groan.

“Chinaman would keep an eye on Bigfoot if you asked him,” Daryl shouted from the driver’s seat of his truck.

“Yeah, well you just keep an eye on your Chupacabra and we won’t be havin ourselves any problems,” Dove turned her head and smiled at the redneck before getting in. She slammed the door behind her and started the car, quickly beginning to look through the car for any music to listen to. She found it in her bag and rolled up the window as the caravan rolled out. Finally, she popped in the CD and for the first time in months, she felt dome sense of normality courtesy of Elton John ringing through her ears.


	9. Sanctuary

It wasn't too long before everything came crashing down on her again as Rick honked his horn in front of her and Dove slammed on the brakes to keep from causing a pile up. She grumbled to herself as she reached into her bag to pull out her sunglasses, only to pull out a necklace with a small black crystal attached to it right along with it. The brunette paused for a moment before she let out an annoyed sigh, reached into the bag again, pulled the necklace over her head, and turned off the car. "What's the issue?" She called up to the group by the RV as she exited the car.

"She broke down again," Dale called back to her before her continued to speak to Rick. Dove groaned and ran a hand through her hair as she moved forward to sit in the grass across from the RV next to Carol.

"This is bullshit," Dove mumbled as she twirled the lighter in her hand.

Carol placed her hand on top of the lighter and caused her sister to stop. "He told them about it before. Now you stop it with that thing, we don't need you startin a forest fire or something on top of this." Dove hated when Carol went into 'lecture-mom' mode. It reminded her too much of when she was younger; before she pulled her shit together.

"Sorry, just nervous I guess," Dove sighed as she switched to playing with the necklace around her neck. Carol only hummed a reply as she stroked Sophia's hair. Jacqui rushed out of the RV and nearly succeeded in scaring Dove half to death as she did so. The young woman jumped to her feet as the other woman began to explain.

"It's Jim. It's real bad. I don't think he's gonna last much longer." Jacqui looked around for help. Rick, as always, jumped to help. Sophia let out a quiet whimper from behind Dove as she wrapped her arms around Carol's waist.

Dove stepped closer to the RV as Daryl walked up the few steps and stopped. She hovered by the doorway, her fingers clutched the stone around her neck as she waited for the man to come back out. It was quicker than she thought, but when Daryl descended he didn't have much of an answer. He just shook his head and mumbled. "Looks real bad. So much for givin him a chance."

Dove leaned against the side of the RV and listened as Rick and Jim spoke in the RV. He was asking them to leave him there. She had to respect him for making a decision for himself but it still hurt. It still felt like a failure because she hadn't been able to help him, not that she would have been able to help much anyway. She wiped the tears off her face as Rick came back out from the RV and spotted her. "…He wants us to leave him here."

Dove sighed. "I heard."

Rick ran a hand through his hair and shook his head, "It's what he says he wants."

Dove tapped her foot on the ground as the others joined the group to listen. It was hard for everyone to take in, no doubt about it.

Carol squinted her eyes at Rick, confused. "He's lucid and asking for this?" Dove pushed off of the RV and walked over to her sister's side. She leaned her forehead on Carol's shoulder and squeezed her eyes shut.

Dale spoke up. "Back at camp, when I said Daryl might be right, you misunderstood. I would never go along with callously killing a man! I was just gonna suggest that…we ask Jim what he wants." Dove let out a heavy sigh as she straightened up.

"I mean, I guess I kind of meant the same thing back there. I didn't think that taking a pickaxe to a man's head was the right idea but…by not giving him a choice, look how much more he's suffered for it," Dove motioned to the RV with tears in her eyes. "Because we didn't give him a chance back at camp he's suffered for longer than he had to and for what?" Her voice broke as Carol pulled her into a tight hug. Lori placed a comforting hand on her shoulder as the men continued to speak.

It was Shane who caught her attention. "I don't know if I'll be able to live with leaving a man to die on the side of the road."

Lori spoke up once again, "It's not your call. Either one of you. It's Jim's call."

That was that. It all seemed to happen so fast. Dove pulled Sophia to the side as they brought him down out of the camper. Jim had never been a big guy, but he looked like the walking definition of fragility at that moment as Shane and Rick carried him down the steps and across the road. Dove followed close behind Carol as the group made its way up the hill. She had seen so much death in the past few days that it seemed like a nightmare she was never going to wake up from.

Jacqui knelt down and stroked Jim's cheek in a comforting way and Dove turned her gaze up to the sky. Tears blurred her vision as she moved up again in the procession. Dove stood next to Glenn, she felt the gentle squeeze on her wrist as Glenn turned to move back down the hill. But Dove didn't follow the others down, instead she moved forward and dropped to her knees in front of Jim.

"I'm sorry," she choked out as she fought to keep from crying, "I'm sorry that I couldn't help you or get there faster with the guns I…"

Jim just shook his head, "Ok, Sawyer. Gonna be with my family now." He already sounded like he was so far away from the grassy hilltop. Dove nodded her head and managed a weak smile as she sucked in a deep breath and rose to her feet. She was surprised to see Daryl still stood there as she turned to walk back down the hill. With a nod to Jim, the redneck motioned for Dove to descend the hill first. She paused for a moment before she pulled the keys from her pocket and made her way back down the hill. As Dove got back to the car, she was glad that she was alone once again. At least no one could judge her for crying now.

~

The ride seemed to take forever, but when they finally came to a stop Dove couldn't find herself wanting to get out. It was only the sight of her family exiting the car in front of her that pushed her to open the door and climb out.

The smell was almost as bad as Atlanta had been, but maybe even worse considering how many bodies littered the ground. Dove gagged as she raised a hand to cover her mouth. She grabbed Sophia's hand as Carol wrapped an arm around her and led them along with the rest of the group. She just hoped there was someone alive in there and this wasn't all for nothing.

She watched as Shane attempted to push the garage doors up and shook her head. "I don't think that's gonna work with these. Odds are there's magnets and all other types of crap keeping that thing on lockdown," she hissed as the man began to pound on the door.

She turned quickly as Glenn shouted about walkers. It was taken out quickly by Daryl, but then it descended into chaos just as quickly. "You led us into a graveyard!"

Dale attempted to plead with the man, "He made a call."

Daryl just shouted right back, "He made the wrong damn call!"

Dove watched as Shane approached him and tried to get him to shut up, but that was just as aggressive. Despite Carol's protest, Dove stepped forward and shoved herself right between the two men, effectively pushing Shane back as she reasoned quietly with Daryl. "Listen, how was Rick supposed to know. He made the wrong call, it happened. Don't make it fucking w _orse_ by screaming and draw in more walkers or _I_ will be the one to put you in a god damn choke hold," she finished with a hiss.

Shane spoke up again as the others panicked, "Fort Benning, Rick…"

Andrea finally spoke up, "On what? No food, no fuel? That's 100 miles and a suicide mission."

"125. I checked the map," Glenn corrected her.

Dove ran back over and grabbed Carol's arm, "Cmon we gotta go. Let's just take your car and go if they can't make a decision."

Carol's eyes grew wide as she shook her head, "I'm not leaving everyone else here to die."

Suddenly, Rick called back to them. "The camera! It moved."

"You imagined it," Dale shook his head.

"It moved. I saw it move! Someone's alive in there," Rick began to shout and Dove's chest began to grow tight with panic. Rick was pounding on the door and it was making way too much noise. "I know you can hear me. Please help us, we have women and children! We have no food, hardly any gas! We have nowhere else to go." Dove squeezed Carol's arm tighter as she watched Lori try to calm Rick down. "You're killing us!" Rick began to pound the door and scream over again. All of a sudden it seemed like Rick's screams had gotten through and she squinted her eyes as the bright fluorescents invaded her vision.

~

Dove could only look around the huge building with wide eyes as she took in everything. Then she heard someone load a rifle. Her attention instantly went to a man who shouted towards them, "Anyone infected?" Rick's answer about Jim seemed to satisfy the man enough. "Why are you here what do you want?"

Rick answered, plain and simple. "A chance."

"That's asking an awful lot these days," the man answered back. Dove watched the man as he glanced around, surveying the group one by one. For a moment, she thought he was going to tell them all to go to hell and throw them out. Then he spoke again and it felt like a weight lifted off her chest. "You all submit to a blood test. That's the price of admission."

Rick nodded his head. "We can do that."

"You got stuff to bring in, do it now. Once this door closes, it stays closed." The doctor explained as he approached the group.

"Glenn," Dove called over as he began to run out the door with some of the other men to get the things from the cars. "Just grab my bag from Carol's car. You can't miss it." Glenn nodded at her and she embraced him happily as she accepted her things back into her arms a few minutes later.

She wasn't as happy when she ended up sandwiched in between Carol and Daryl in the packed elevator. She held her bag tightly in front of her as she stared straight ahead at a spot on the wall above Lori's head. Daryl broke the awkward silence. "Doctors always go around packing heat like that," he questioned the doctor and Dove couldn't help herself.

She landed a well concealed punch right to his forearm as she mumbled, "fuckin jackass,"

To her surprise, the doctor answered back seriously. "There were plenty lying around. I familiarized myself with them. But you all look harmless enough." Dove rolled her eyes. "Except you," Jenner pointed to Carl and Dove could barely hold back a laugh.

Once the doors opened, Dove walked closely behind Carol and Sophia. She took in her surroundings as she walked. "We underground," Carol piped up.

"Why. You claustrophobic," the doctor questioned her.

"A little," Carol answered.

"A lot," Dove replied.

Dr. Jenner glanced over his shoulder at them, "Try not to think about it."

Dove rolled her eyes, threw a hand in the air, and mumbled to herself, "Oh wow why haven't I just thought of that before. I'm cured." She thought she heard Daryl snort somewhere behind her and she trained her focus back on her surroundings. This place looked way too sterile. So sterile that it made her skin crawl. Her hazel eyes burned as more lights turned on in the room in front of them.

"Where is everybody," Rick questioned the other man. Maybe that was what was bothering her. There were all these rooms, all these doorways but no one else was around as far as they'd seen.

"I'm it. It's just me here." Jenner answered and Dove felt a chill run down her spine. That didn't seem good at all.

"What about the person you were speaking to? VI?" Lori spoke up from the back of the group.

"VI, say hello to our guests," Jenner called out into the nothingness of the room around them. A computerized voice echoed from the speakers around them.

Dove waited in line to get her blood taken and winced as the needle was inserted into her arm. "So a blood test can really tell if we're infected? I mean, none of us have been bitten."

The doctor just smiled at her as he pulled the needle from her arm and motioned for her to get out of the chair. "Yes. A blood test can tell."

~

Of all things, Dove hadn't been expecting the CDC to have such a collection of wine and she made sure to say so about 5 times. She sat in between Carol and Jacqui, a genuine smile on her face for the first time in what felt like months. "You know," Dale explained, "In Italy, children have a little wine with their dinner."

"I think that sounds like good ol' uncle Dale has had a little too much wine with his dinner if you ask me," Dove whispered to Jacqui before she let out a snort of laughter at her own stupid joke.

"When Carl is in Italy or France, then he can have some but we're in Georgia so that's a no," Lori laughed as she placed a hand over Carl's glass.

"What's it gonna hurt. Come on," Rick chimed in.

The group all sat still as Carl took a sip, only to promptly make a sour face. Dove shook her head and raised her own glass to take a sip. "That's my boy," Lori stated as she poured the wine from Carl's glass into her own.

Dove reached across the table and grabbed the bottle of wine and poured more into her glass. "You wanna slow down there," Jacqui joked as she eyed her glass.

"Listen, I was a therapist. I could probably drink on a professional level at this point, I'm good." Dove shook her head as she placed the bottle back down on the table to more laughs.

"Better stick to soda pop there, bud," Shane laughed at Carl.

"Not you Glenn." Daryl shouted as he walked around the table. Dove turned in her chair, an arm draped over the back so she could see Glenn.

"What," Glenn grinned, his face already a little pink whether it was from the attention being on him or the alcohol.

"Keep drinking, little man. I wanna see how red your face can get," Daryl joked. Dove stopped mid-sip in an attempt to not choke on her drink. Carol patted Dove on the back.

"New rule everyone, we carry alcohol with us wherever we go," Dove raised a hand in the air.

"Why's that," Dale questioned from across the table.

Dove shrugged her shoulders. "Because it actually seems to make Daryl a little more tolerable," she laughed as she ducked her head back into her glass as the group seemed to laugh in agreement. Daryl rolled his eyes as he held out his hand for the wine bottle and actually thanked Dove when she handed it to him.

The clinking on Rick's glass brought everyone back to order for a moment. "We haven't thanked our host yet," Rick stood up.

Dove raised her glass as Dale said his thanks, followed by a loud shout of "Booyah," from Daryl.

Dove turned her head, her hazel eyes locked with Carol's for a second as the other woman actually laughed and raised her own glass. Sophia even seemed to be enjoying herself and for that, she would always be somewhat grateful to Dr. Edwin Jenner for the few hours of peace he has given her family.


	10. Get Out Alive

Dove sat still except for her fingers drumming on the table as Shane succeeded in bringing down the mood. Why did he have to still try to be the alpha? Why couldn't he just let people be fucking happy and blissfully ignorant for once. Rick had been right, after all. The military couldn't handle it according to the doctor. The tension in the room was stifling until Glenn spoke up from the corner. "Dude, you are such a buzzkill, man," Glenn grumbled as he sank into a chair next to Jacqui.

"Fuckin real Debbie Downer, Shane," Dove added as she ran a hand through her hair before chewing on her thumb nail. Finally, it seemed to be a little too much for the doctor too. He forced a smile as he stood up.

"Ready for the real tour," he said in an overly friendly way that made Dove's skin crawl but she had to admit she was curious and so was everyone else apparently. The dark haired woman took Sophia's hand and started after the doctor; she only stopped to put her backpack over her shoulder before they started down the hallway.

"Couches are comfortable, but there are cots in storage if you like," the man explained as the lights turned on down the hallway.

"Anything's better than sleeping on the cold, hard ground in a sleeping bag, man," Dove said in response. This earned her an actual smile from the doctor.

"Make sure you don't plug in anything that uses power," the doctor turned and pointed at all of them. "Also goes for the shower. If you use it, go easy on the hot water." Dove had stopped paying attention when the word 'shower' was mentioned.

"Hot water," Glenn beamed as he turned to face everyone.

"That's what the man said," T-dog laughed. The tension was now replaced with excitement that everyone seemed to be feeling.

"I call first," Dove shouted suddenly before she took off in a sprint down the hallway. The feeling of hot water on her skin made her shriek with excitement as she was finally able to step into the shower. She wished she could stand there forever. Just alone with her thoughts and feeling normal. Still, she was careful to spare the hot water especially due to the doctor's warning. She wrapped a towel around herself before carefully reaching out to grab clean clothes from where she had thrown them in her rush to get in the shower. As she turned to step back into the stall, she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. The young woman turned slightly and let out a quiet snort of laughter.

Daryl's head snapped around, his eyes wandered for a second before they snapped right back up to her face. _Impressive eye contact._ "What're you laughin at," he narrowed his eyes at her as he drummed his fingers on the bottle of whiskey.

Dove clutched her towel tightly and shrugged her shoulders. "Nothin, just didn't realize you were white under all that dirt," yep she had definitely had a little too much to drink. But so had Glenn, since she heard him laugh from about 2 stalls down. The only response she got was a 'hell with ya' followed by a quick exit before she turned to finally go change. She was grateful to be able to be in comfortable clothes, which for her meant an oversized t-shirt and some pajama shorts.

Once back in her room, Dove was able to lay down on a cot. She stretched her arms above her head as she closed her eyes. It was quiet. Not the scary kind of quiet that it had been out there, but it was a nice kind of quiet. A small shake of her shoulders made her open her eyes. It was Carol. "You look like you enjoyed yourself," Carol joked as she pulled her cardigan tight around herself.

"Oh you know it, mama bear. I don't think I've had that much wine since…jesus I don't even know," Dove laughed as Carol joined in.

"Sophia and I are going to go down to the rec room and check it out. Come with us," Carol smiled down at her sister.

Sophia chimed in from the doorway, "Yeah come on! Maybe they have some books and boards games and stuff like that!"

Dove sighed as she pulled herself into a sitting position, a smile on her face. "You had me at books, kiddo."

* * *

Dove sat down on the couch in the rec room as Carl and Sophia began to rummage through the board games. Dove sighed as she leaned back into the cushion. Carol spoke as she wandered over to the bookshelf, "You want anything to read?"

"Nah I'm good. I feel like if I tried, the words would swim off the pages," Dove chuckled as she shook her head slightly. Dove sighed and opened her eyes to see that Sophia had found a coloring book and Carl had found some markers. "A wise choice. You guys can't kill each other while you color." Carol laughed quietly as she walked over to sit next to her sister.

Carol opened her book before she turned to the younger woman. "How long do you think we'll be here?"

Dove shrugged her shoulders as she leaned to her right. She didn't necessarily want the kids to hear. "Dunno. Maybe a few months at most? Maybe weeks. Who know how much food and everything Jenner has left here anyway. But maybe by the time we leave everything will be better upstairs."

Carol sighed and nodded her head before she plastered a smile on her face for Sophia's sake. "I was thinking so too. I hope you're right."

Dove didn't know how long they were in the rec room or how long it was before she dozed off. Carol had been reading next to her and the next thing she knew, she was woken up by Carol's voice close to her ear. She groaned and rubbed her eyes as she sat up, only to see that Lori had walked into the room. "Hey Lori."

Lori chuckled as she greeted the other woman before she turned back to examine the room. Dove let out an exaggerated sigh right along with the kids as Carol announced that it was time for bed. "Aw come on, do we have to," Dove groaned. Sophia let out a quiet giggle as Dove rose to her feet. "C'mon Carl, we'll make sure you get to your room, buddy." Dove ruffled the little boy's hair as his mother wished him a good night.

Up ahead, Carol said, "Tonight might be the first night we get some real sleep. It's a miracle."

"Amen, hallelujah," Dove raised a hand in the air. Carl laughed as they exited into the hallway. Dove spotted movement down the other end of the hallway as they reached the door to the room they were sharing and stopped for a moment. "You guys run up ahead. I'll catch up before you even fall asleep, bug." Dove didn't wait for a response as she started down the hallway. She squinted and tried to see what was going on down the other end when she realized what it was. It was Daryl headed down the hallway, bottle of liquor in his hand as he stumbled back to his room. "Rough night," Dove leaned against the wall as she eyed the bottle in his hand.

Daryl nodded at her and stopped a few feet back, "Poor Glenn had to be carried back to his room. I don't think he's ever had that much to drink in his life," he laughed as he brought the bottle up to his mouth and took a drink.

"Yeah well I haven't had that much to drink in," Dove was cut off by a rough shove to her shoulder as someone rushed around the corner. "Hey!" She yelped as she stumbled forward a few steps and grabbed Daryl's arm to steady herself.

"What the fucks his problem," Daryl turned to look down the hallway as Shane slammed the door to his room shut.

"Shane's a fucking asshole is his problem. Alcohol just intensifies that in some people," she said quietly as she released the man's arm and stood up straight again. "You better get some rest before that hangover catches up with you."

Daryl nodded, "Same to you. I hear wine hangovers are a bitch," he patted her arm as he walked off down the hallway.

Dove backtracked and just before she opened the door to enter the room, she stopped. "What a bunch of fucking loonies."

* * *

Wine hangovers are, in fact, a bitch. Dove remembered this as she tried to keep her focus on making the walls not move around her as she sat down for breakfast across from Lori and Carl. "Well good morning, sleeping beauty," Lori laughed as she took one look at Dove's miserable face.

Carl frowned at the woman and looked to his mom, "What's wrong with her?"

"This, little buddy," Dove groaned as she took the pills that Lori had just offered her, "is called a hangover. Imagine the worst headache of your life. Only worse."

Lori smiled a little, "Exactly. And your daddy will probably feel the same way," she pointed at Carl.

"So much for drinking on a professional level," Daryl snorted as he walked in and took a seat a few chairs down from the younger woman.

Dove wrinkled her nose as she swallowed a gulp of water, "Shut up, Daryl."

She jumped in her chair a little bit as T-Dog piped up from behind her as he reached around to set the plate in front of her. "Here's some breakfast for the little birdie," he joked as he rested a hand on her shoulder.

"Okay firstly, I thought that cannibalism would be a more sensitive topic given our circumstances given that you're feeding me eggs," Dove rubbed her forehead. Lori tried her best to hide her laughter. "Secondly, thank you very much. You spoil me." Dove sighed happily as she picked up her fork and began to dig in right along with everyone else.

Dove snorted as she caught a look of Rick as he walked in. Shit he looked worse than she did. "Are you hung over? Dove is and mom said you would be," Carl said in an almost excited voice. Dove had to stop herself from laughing.

Rick just smiled at the little boy, "well your mother was right."

Dove could already feel the focus coming back into her life. Dove looked down the table and chuckled as she saw Jacqui had started to rub Glenn's shoulders. She leaned over and patted his arm from her seat a few spots down as T-Dog began to talk about the eggs. "Aw my poor baby. Do you need me to kiss it and make it better," she cooed at him, but it only earned her a glare from the younger man as he continued to rub his face.

Dove stopped her joking as she heard T-Dog ask Shane what happened to his neck. A glance down the table showed her that Daryl had the same thought she did as they locked eyes for a moment before her attention turned to Shane. Were those scratch marks?

"Must have done it in my sleep," Shane said.

Dove rolled her eyes and this earned her a subtle slap to the back by Carol. She didn't need it. She knew better than to start something with the other man. He seemed really unstable and that was coming from someone who had spent hours at a time over the past few days with Daryl Dixon.

* * *

The human brain was a fascinating thing. Dove didn't want to say anything, but she almost felt excited to be able to see what this virus did to people's heads that made them behave the way they were outside. Her hands were wrapped around a cup of coffee as she followed behind Sophia back to the main room. She heard Jenner begin to talk to the computerized voice, VI, again. She stopped on Carol's other side and only leaned closer to her as Daryl stopped next to her.

"What are all those lights," Shane questioned as the person's brain activity began to play on the screen. Dove felt her jaw drop as she watched the light show on the screen.

"That's someone's whole life. Somewhere in all that organic wiring is you," the doctor turned and pointed at Sophia. "The thing that makes you unique and human." Dove really had to appreciate the doctor's way with words. He made it sound pretty damn beautiful.

"You don't make sense ever," Daryl questioned the man. Dove rolled her eyes but turned her attention to the redneck.

When she spoke, she sounded confident. Like she knew what she was talking about, at least somewhat. "What he means is, inside the brain. All those lights? It your synapses. Automatic reflexes, ability to talk, memories. You know what I mean. Every time a different part of the brain is lighting up, that's something that person is thinking about or doing that makes them who they are." She stopped and turned her attention back to the man in front of the group. "I mean at least that's my understanding of it. I almost failed neuropsych so…"

The doctor chuckled and nodded his head. "Basically, you're right. The only thing you missed is that they are the electrical impulses that carry the messages through your brain." Dove couldn't help but feel a little bit proud of herself as Carol gave her a pat on the back. "Everything a person says or does from the moment of life to the moment of death.

"Is that what this is? A vigil," Rick stepped forward and Dove felt her heart sink.

When Dove realized what they were about to watch, she tuned out the rest of the world and focused on the screen in front of them. Her fingers clutched at the stone on her necklace as she watched the person's brain go dark. "Is that what happened to Jim," she heard Sophia say. Sophia was always a smart kid. Maybe too smart for her own good.

She couldn't stop the sense of dread that crept in as the brain stem became active on screen.

"The you part doesn't come back. A shell, driven by mindless instinct." Dove jumped slightly as she watched a bullet go through the person's head on the screen. That was it. There was no explanation for what was going on. They really had come all this way for nothing.

"You have no idea what this is do you," Andrea eyed the man.

"It could be microbial, viral," he continued on as Dove ran a hand through her hair and rested her head in her hands.

"Or the wrath of God," Jacqui stated. It was just as likely an option in Dove's eyes.

Dove began to pace back and forth between the rows of computers.

"Man, I'm gonna get shitfaced drunk…again," Daryl shouted as he began to pace.

Dove stopped as she heard something that made her even more hopeless. "VI what happens when the power runs out?"

"When the power runs out," the computer began, "facility-wide decontamination will occur."

Dove just stared at Carol, both of them were seeking an answer the other didn't have. Both just wanted the other to say they weren't going to die down here under the ground without a chance. The two of them led Sophia back to their room as she began to panic. "Listen to me, Sophia. I promised I wasn't going to let anything happen to you and I meant it." Dove pulled her into a tight hug as they entered the room and Carol began to pace.

Suddenly, it went dark for a minute. There was a loud 'what the fuck' from the next room as Sophia shrieked before the lights came back on followed by an announcement about emergency lighting being on. Dove froze in her tracks as she raised up on her tiptoes and held a hand to the vent. "I'll be right back."

Before either of them could protest, Dove had left the room, rounded the corner, and banged on the door she was looking for. Daryl looked angry as he ripped the door open. "What? Can't a man fucking accept death coming by getting shit-faced in fucking peace, bird?"

"No," Dove stated simply as she marched past him into the room. The door got slammed behind her as he rounded on her. "Listen! Just listen! None of us want to die down here. There has to be a way out right?" She turned to look at him.

Daryl scowled as he raised the bottle to his lips, "The hell you askin me for."

Dove threw her arms in the air, "Because maybe you're not a total idiot and actually my usual sounding board is off trying to save our asses in the fucking basement of the CDC!" Her voice raised with every word until it finally cracked. There was another surge of power and the lights went out again. Dove jumped at the sound it made and shrieked.

Daryl finally looked nervous. "What the fuck is going on?"

Then she heard it. Doors opening in the hallway and loud voices. "Why is the air off," a voice spoke up.

"Carol," Dove said quietly as she made her way to the door but Daryl beat her to it.

"What the hell's going on? Why is everything turned off," he called out into the hallway as Dove peeked her head out right after him. She didn't miss the suspicious look that Dale gave her, though. Nosy bastard.

Dove's eyes widened as the doctor swiped the bottle of alcohol from Daryl as he started down the hallway. "Energy use is being prioritized."

"Air and lights aren't a priority," Dale spoke up from the other end of the hall. Dove ran out of the room behind Daryl as he started after the other man.

"Hey man, I'm talking to you," she heard Daryl shout just before she caught up to them on the other side. "What do you mean it's shutting itself down? How can a building do anything?"

Dove reached out a hand behind her as Sophia clutched her hand tightly in a panic. Dove just nodded her head as Rick instructed everyone to go and get their things. They weren't fast enough though, as the doors leading out of the room shut right in front of their eyes.

The doctor was scaring the kids, hell he was scaring everyone as he began to rant about the horrible diseases that they didn't want getting out. Her head was beginning to pound again and it felt like the room was spinning as Sophia clung to her arm. Dove narrowed her eyes at the man as he sat down in the chair. "In event of a power failure or terrorist attack, H.I.T.s are deployed to ensure public safety." He stated as he regained his calm composure.

"H.I.T.s?" Rick questioned.

The computerized voice spoke again, "H.I.T.s. High-impulse thermobaric fuel-air explosives consist of a two-stage aerosol ignition that produces a blast wave of significantly greater power and duration than any other known explosive except nuclear."

Dove felt Sophia's hand slip away from her as Carol wrapped her arms around her daughter. Dove sank to the floor and buried her face in her hands as the voice continued and Dr. Jenner finished. "It sets the air on fire. No pain. An end to sorrow, grief, and regret. Everything."

Dove shuddered as she tried to hold back tears. It was all turning chaotic. Even Rick. Calm, good cop Rick still tried to hold it together but he couldn't. Dove just watched from her spot on the floor next to Carol as Shane and Daryl tried their hardest to open the door. Carol and both of the kids hadn't stopped crying. Dove wrapped an arm around Carol's shoulders as she looked over at Lori. The older brunette still looked like she was just in shock.

"You should've left well enough alone. It would've been so much easier," Edwin spoke from his chair. Dove felt anger start to bubble in her stomach.

Lori snapped back at him, "Easier for who?"

"All of you, you know what's out there. A short, brutal life and an agonizing death," Jenner sounded like it actually made sense to him.

Dove leaned forward and almost growled at the man. "That still doesn't give you the right to make that choice for anyone you psychotic prick! Like burning us alive in your underground fucking dungeon is any better than what's out there." She had reached her limit with this guy. There was no way he was going to justify the fact that he was going to wipe out whole families right now.

Andrea, on the other hand, seemed just as eerily calm as the doctor did. It scared her. Shane finally ran back down the walkway, "We couldn't make a dent."

"Those doors are designed to withstand a rocket launcher," Jenner explained.

"Well your head ain't," Daryl shouted as he ran full speed down the ramp, axe swung back over his shoulder.

Everyone yelled again as the men all moved to grab him and stop him from killing the doctor.

"What part of everything's gone don't you understand," Andrea spoke up from the ground.

Dove glared daggers at the blonde woman as Sophia started to cry again.

"This is our extinction event."

"Yeah well, last I checked they were still finding things as old as the damn dinosaurs in the ocean, doctor," Dove hissed as she leaned over to comfort Sophia.

"You can't just keep us here," Carol sobbed.

"One tiny millisecond, no pain," Jenner leaned forward. Dove started to see red.

"My daughter doesn't deserve to die like this," Dove watched as her sister buried her face in Sophia's hair and broke down.

"Wouldn't it be kinder? More compassionate to just hold your loved ones," Jenner continued as Dale helped Sophia and Carol to their feet. Dove stayed where she was, despite Carol's attempts to pull her arm. "And wait for the clock to run out?" That was it.

Dove screamed and launched herself at the man. Her fist connected to his face once before a few sets of arms pulled her back. "You fucking prick! Fucking bastard! You wanna die? I'll gladly fucking help you," she shrieked as the arms pulled her back as she kicked her feet and tried to reach his head again. Once she was across the room, she felt herself get set down in a chair. T-Dog and Glenn both stared down at her. She noticed the slight fear in Glenn's eyes, but she didn't care as she sat there. Her fingernails dug into the arms of the chair as she tried to steady her breathing.

"Now you stay there," T snapped at her as he walked off to help with the door. Nothing else sunk in as she watched Shane pull a gun on the doctor now. Her knuckles hurt. It had only been one hit, but she felt like it had been a hard one. Sophia's quiet voice brought her back to her senses.

"I don't wanna die down here," the little girl cried.

Dove sucked in a deep breath before she spoke. "I don't think Rick's gonna let that happen, sweetie." Dove jumped out of her seat and wrapped her arms around her family as Shane started to fire at the computers.

Rick finally spoke up again. "I think you're lying about no hope. If that was true, you would've bolted or taken the easy way out. You didn't leave. Why?"

Jenner stood up, finally really engaged in the pleas of everyone around him. "I had to. I made a promise to her. My wife." Dove squeezed Carol's arm.

"Oh my god," she heard her sister utter from next to her.

"Test subject 19 was your wife," Lori stated.

"She begged me to keep working as long as I could have. How could I say no? She was dying. She ran this place! Hell, I just worked here. She could have done something," Jenner explained as Dove heard the bangs on the door begin again. She pulled away from Carol with a quick nod and ran up the ramp. The young woman stood on her tiptoes and began to feel along the ridge of the door.

"What the hell are you doin," Daryl shouted as he swung the axe further down the door.

"Lookin to see if there's a gap! Even if there's a tiny one, maybe you can slide the axe under there? Get some leverage and pry the son of a bitch open," Dove called over the repeated hits of the axe.

"So what are you talkin for? Keep lookin," Daryl shouted as Dove rolled her eyes. A _whoosh_ sound startled Dove enough to cause her to fall back. The door was open. They were free. A strong grip was on her arm as Daryl had dropped the axe and pulled her to her feet. "C'mon let's go!" He shouted back to everyone.

A sense of relief rushed through the woman as Sophia ran up the ramp and right into her arms. Without a moment of hesitation, Dove picked the girl up as best she could. Carol followed close behind and started down the hallway to wait for everyone. There would be time to hug each other later, but right now they just had to worry about getting out of here alive.


	11. Staircase

Dove never thought that she would see sunlight again. She felt sad for losing Jacqui, of course. The older woman had been kinder to her and Carol than she had to be, but she was more grateful to have her family with her. To be able to feel the sun on her face again. She stood close by Carol as she watched the men try to bust the windows down with everything, they could get their hands on. The axes, chairs, hell even the guns. Nothing worked.

A thought crossed through Dove’s head as she sat on the ground next to Sophia to shield her from anything that might go flying. In an instant, her attention was drawn away from the window to her sister who was already on her feet, ready to hand Rick a grenade. She scrambled to her feet, more careful as she pulled Sophia right along with her. “A nail file isn’t gonna help,” Shane said. _God even close to death, Shane can be a fucking asshole._ She said nothing and smirked to herself as she saw the shock cross Rick’s face.

The explosion was loud and shook the whole room. Sophia yelped and Dove covered her ears as the grenade exploded and the glass shattered. She could feel the wind on her back already, they were so nearly free. There was shouting as everyone began to pile towards the window. Glenn jumped down out of the window and held his hand out to Dove, ready to steady her when she landed. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she turned and held her arms out for Sophia as the others continued to jump around her. “Just jump, Sophia. I got you!” Dove called up to her as Carol jumped down and cast a worried glance between her family members.

“You can do it Sophia, come on honey. It’s not that far,” Carol’s voice shook.

Sophia let out a small whimper before she finally jumped. Just like she promised, Dove leaned forward and caught the girl before her feet could touch the ground. “Good girl, Soph,” Glenn managed a weak smile as the four of them took off towards the cars with the rest of the group. There were walkers everywhere, but they were going down just as fast. It was only as she pushed Sophia and Carol closer to the car that she noticed something.

“Wait where’s Dale,” Dove shouted over the chaos.

Carol froze, hand on the door handle to the car before she pointed towards the building. “There they are!” Dove took her word for it as she opened the passenger side door and got into the car. She wanted Carol to slam on the gas and just go but she knew there was no way they were going anywhere alone.

The shockwaves from the CDC exploding shook the earth around them as Carol laid down across the front seat. Dove peeked her head up when it was finally over, only to see that Sophia was peeking her head up from the floor of the Jeep. “Good girl,” Dove chuckled weakly as she reached back and ruffled Sophia’s hair.

A look through the back window before the caravan started to move showed that T and even Daryl looked just as frightened as everyone else did. There was nowhere to go but forward. The younger woman leaned back in the passenger seat as Carol put the car in drive. It was the first time in a long time that she just wanted to drive in silence.

~

No matter how nice they were, Dove didn’t like the idea of heading back to the Vatos gang. Something just didn’t feel right about it and she was sure to tell her sister about it. “Listen, I mean they weren’t bad people. There were a lot of them there, I just don’t know if they’ll be so willing to take in a big group of people,” she muttered to Carol after she heard Rick talk over the walkie.

Carol sighed and ran a hand down her face. “I don’t know. We might as well go if Rick thinks it’s a good idea.” She tried to keep her voice down as best she could. Dove could feel for her, still wanting to protect Sophia from hearing things she shouldn’t have to.

A quick look over her shoulder and Dove leaned closer to her sister in the front seat. “Yeah well Rick also thought the CDC was a good idea and look…”

“Enough. We’re not talking about this anymore,” Carol shook her head as she reached over and hit the volume button on the radio. Dove’s music started right back up where she left off and she was left feeling like a scolded child as she huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

It was silent until they pulled up to the gates, then it was too silent. Dove whispered, “Sophia, do me a favor? Hand me that crowbar in the hatch back there,” Dove said as she continued to stare out the front windshield.

“This one,” Sophia questioned as she passed it in between the two women in the front seat.

Carol looked between her sister and the weapon but didn’t say anything. Dove beamed as she took the bar from the girl’s hand. “Yes, that exact one. Thank you, sweetheart.” She felt like a line of ants as the group marched along together up to the bricks that marked the entrance.

“All the guns they gave us, they’ll probably throw us a party,” Daryl answered as Andrea voiced Dove’s own concerns about the group, they were on their way to see. “Good call…for once,” he glanced sideways at Rick. Dove rolled her eyes and held a hand behind her.

“Just stay behind me, okay,” she said quietly to Carol and Sophia. As they walked further in, it felt more and more wrong.

“Where’re the lookouts,” Glenn panicked.

“Something isn’t right here,” Dove hissed back quietly as her eyes darted around the grounds. A few moments later, she realized what exactly had happened. Walkers were inside the camp. Panic swept over her as she turned her back to the men and focused on Sophia. Carol already held a hand over her eyes and crouched down next to her. “Don’t scream it’s gonna be alright,” Dove tried to keep her voice calm even though she felt her own panic rising.

She pulled Sophia right after her as they began to follow Rick through the building. Dove offered quiet words of encouragement to Sophia for being able to keep quiet, hell it was worth a shot. It didn’t help much as the little girl rounded the corner first and got a full view of a few dead bodies. As Sophia clung to her mother, Dove’s attention turned to Daryl. “You shut that little girl the hell up! Right now, or I will” he growled back at them.

Dove narrowed her eyes and raised her crowbar slightly until a strong grip made her stop. “You cut that out, right now.” Lori warned him as she pushed Dove back a step. She had to give it to the other woman, she had really nailed the ‘lecturing mom’ look and voice. It even made Dixon stop with how intense she was. A sharp tug on her arm pulled her back as the women went to block the doors. “Listen, I know you’re angry.” Lori sighed as they pulled an empty refrigerator across the room together, “but you can’t let him get to you like that.”

Dove huffed as she pulled harder on the fridge, a relieved exhale left her as Lori nodded to show that it was good enough. Dove brushed her hair back from her face and lowered her voice. “He threatened Sophia.”

Lori shook her head and placed a hand on the younger brunette’s shoulder, “You leave Daryl to me. I mean he listened this time, right?” Dove didn’t answer and Lori continued. “Besides, if he gets too out of hand, we’ll just sick you on him.” Lori gave her arm a playful shove before she marched back over to the others.

“Promises, promises,” Dove chuckled as she picked up her crowbar and tried to prepare herself for what else they might see. Sudden movement behind the door made her drop to the ground where she stood. Her eyes locked with Carol before it was safe enough to move.

~

It was serious business when Carol was angry enough to speak her mind and Dove knew it. “Are you telling the truth or are you lying like all the other times?” Carol looked angry and Dove felt a wave of admiration go through her. There she was, that was the woman that made Dove want to be strong. The real Carol peeked through for a moment and then it was gone like a puff of smoke as Lori spoke in defense of her husband.

Dove placed a hand on Carol’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze, “Atta girl,” she muttered under her breath.

“The hell happened,” Glenn sighed as he looked around the room.

“What do you think,” Andrea spoke up. Dove felt her blood start to boil. Did she have to be so condescending? “They got overrun.” Dove rolled her eyes, then raised her eyebrows. Daryl had scoffed at the other woman. “Something to say,” Andrea snapped.

“Uh yeah, how about observant,” Daryl snapped right back.

Andrea nodded, “Observant. Big word coming from a guy like you. Three whole syllables.”

Dove pinched the bridge of her nose, “Can you like stop being an uppity bitch for like 5 damn seconds and let someone else have an opinion?” She planted her feet on the ground and placed her hand on her hip as she observed the other woman. There was a stunned silence for a moment before Daryl continued. Hell, she never thought she’d defend Daryl ever, especially after what he’d said to Sophia, but everyone deserved to have their voices heard.

Daryl continued, “Walkers didn’t do this.” That was clear to anyone with a brain. The ones she’d seen all had headshots. “Geeks didn’t show up until all this went down. Somebody attacked this place.” Dove felt Sophia shift closer to her as she knelt beside her. “Killed all these people, took whatever they wanted. They’re all shot in the head, execution style. Y’all worried about walkers? What about the people that came and did all this?”

Dove glanced over at Rick as he looked over a body. A nod from the sheriff seemed to confirm everything that Daryl had just said. Dove never thought she would see the day when she could appreciate any words coming out of the mouth of Daryl Dixon, but she never thought she’d see the dead walk either. “Get a dictionary,” Daryl smirked at Andrea, “look it up. Observant.”

Dove couldn’t fight back the nervous giggle that left her lips at Andrea’s face. A subtle slap to the arm made her clear her throat as she rose to her feet again. “Sorry. Sorry,” she mumbled as she placed a hand over her mouth and walked over closer to Glenn.

Glenn watched as Daryl left the room. “Did that just happen,” he mumbled to Dove.

“I don’t know about you, but that might have just about been the best thing I’ve seen in weeks,” Dove whispered back. “But odds are, that might have shoved the stick further up Andrea’s ass.” She nudged Glenn as the group started to move on again. Glenn just shook his head.

~

One bottle of water, garbanzo beans, and fucking cough drops. That’s all that was left out of everything Guillermo had fought for. What would be left of her when she died? Probably just a crowbar, a comfortable pair of boots, and maybe a few old pieces of jewelry. That’s if she was lucky.

“I don’t think salty snacks are that great without water,” Dove sighed as she caught the bag of chips Shane had tossed to her.. “I think I’ll pass,” she smiled as she held out her bag of chips to Carl. The little boy took them with a big beaming smile.

Dove wasn’t that surprised at all to see that Shane had managed to smuggle a bottle of wine out of the CDC right along with him. “I’d go easy on that stuff,” Lori spoke up again as Daryl went to open the bottle, “don’t forget where we are.”

Daryl nodded and uttered a quick, “Yes ma’am,” before popping the bottle open. Dove ruffled Sophia’s hair as she tried her best to look like she was enjoying the meal in front of her. It made her sad to think about all the things her family might have been through without her around.

Dove sighed and dug through the bag she had left in the car. She shuffled a pack of cards nervously as Glenn brought up all the people that had been killed. Her eyes drifted around the room before they landed on Daryl. He just shook his head as he took another drink from the bottle. Carol shook her head as the men left the room. “I’m perfectly fine with them talking about it with adults here but with the kids, they really do need to be more careful,” she sighed as she stroked Sophia’s hair and tried to calm her down.

Lori sank down to the ground next to Carl and stared at the paper crafts on the wall. “I’m sorry, Carol. I can talk to them when they get back in if you want.”

Dove shook her head as she focused on the movement of the cards between her hands. “You don’t have to. I’ll do it.” Her focus shifted to the other woman, a look of surprise on her face. “You don’t have to carry the weight of actual common sense on your shoulders, Lori. I got you this time, but you owe me.” Lori smiled gratefully as she went to reply but was interrupted by a scoff from across the room. “You got some other enlightening information for us all Andrea, or are you just going to sit over there are wallow enough for all of us?” Dove’s attention turned to the blonde woman.

Andrea shifted forward as she spoke, “You’re all trying to play leader like it matter or something. Everything’s gone. None of that matters anymore! Look around us! Everyone else is dead,” Andrea stopped as Sophia began to whimper and inched closer to Carol.

Dove gripped the cards in her hands so tight she thought she might break the skin before she composed herself enough to reply, “If none of it matters then why the hell are you still here? You don’t even believe half of the shit you’re spewing out. I think you’re just angry because Dale wouldn’t let you get yourself blown up and on top of it? You got outsmarted by Daryl Dixon of all people! Now I can’t imagine how that would feel, but what I would like to imagine is for you to decide whether you want to stay here and act like shit matters or else you decide to go out on your own and get yourself killed.” The silence between the women in the room was palpable as Carol stared at her sister and Lori placed an arm around Carl.

“You must have been a shitty counselor,” Andrea snapped at the brunette across from her.

“Yeah and you must have been a real shit lawyer if that’s your only argument. Now shut the hell up and eat your beans or I’ll come over there and take them for someone who’s actually _grateful_ for what they got,” Dove snapped. The silence was only broken by the door being opened back up and the men filed back in. A confused look crossed Dale’s face as he glanced over and saw Andrea begin to pick at the food on her plate. A hand raised in the air and that said to Dove that he wasn’t even going to ask.

~

A few hours passed after Dove had taken it upon herself to talk to Glenn about not upsetting Sophia and she felt like she had kicked a puppy. At least she’d done him the courtesy of doing it while he was on watch. A hand shook her awake from her slumber as she jolted up. It was Glenn. “Hey, you asked me to let you know when I was off watch. You sure you wanna go out there,” even in the dark, she could see the worry cross his face.

Dove sighed heavily as she dug into her bag and pulled out the pack of cigarettes she’d been trying to sneak since this whole thing started. She’d been too close to Carol, she’d feared a lecture, but now she couldn’t give a fuck. “Yeah, gotta bite the bullet and go talk to the other one.” She ran a hand through her hair as she shoved the pack and her lighter into her pocket. Glenn held a handout and helped his friend to her feet before he took her spot on the ground next to Carol and Sophia. “Keep it warm for me, buddy,” Dove winked at the younger man as she headed quietly to the door.

She didn’t have to look far until she saw the man on the top of the stairs. His hearing must have been better than she thought as he turned to see her walk down the hallway. Dove pulled her hands from her pockets and held them up, pack in one hand and lighter in the other. “I come in peace,” she whispered as she came to a stop by the railing. Daryl just grunted as he turned to look back down the stairs. The only sound the echoed between them for a moment was a click from the lighter and then a relieved sigh as the cigarette finally lit. Dove held out the pack to Daryl as she removed the cigarette from her mouth and blew the smoke out after a few seconds. “A one-time offer,” she chirped as she waved the pack in front of the man and handed him the lighter after he swiped it from her hand.

“What do ya want,” he whispered as he began to light his cigarette.

Dove sighed and rubbed her forehead. “Sorry that I told you I was gonna put you in a headlock. I was stressed,” she caught Daryl’s eye for a moment. The look on his face made her want to shrink back into her coat. “Yeah, that must sound pretty stupid.” She laughed quietly before Daryl spoke up.

“Apology accepted. But next time you threaten me with something, you best follow through,” Daryl’s response was humorless and Dove just nodded in response.

The two of them spent the next few minutes in silence. Smoke filling their lungs and being blown back out into the air every few seconds. Dove yawned and raised her arms above her head, “I thought it was pretty awesome how you took charge before when Andrea tried to call you stupid.”

Another scoff. “I didn’t do it to fucking be _awesome._ Ya’ll gotta know what we’re dealin with. I don’t give a shit if someone thinks I’m stupid. So long as I know I got my shit together.”

Dove nodded her head as she tossed cigarette to the floor. The light on the end of the cigarette went out as she pressed the toe of her shoe into it and blew the last of the smoke from her mouth. “For what it’s worth, I don’t think you’re that stupid.” Daryl turned his head slightly to look at her, his expression unreadable. A smirk crept onto Dove’s face as she leaned down slightly, “but if you threaten my niece again? I just might have to kill you.” She stood up straighter again, as calm as ever. “Night,” she cooed over her shoulder and then she was off down the hallway again. Within a matter of seconds, Daryl was alone in the hallway again and it was like it never happened.


	12. Lost Girl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been dreading but also really excited for season 2 to start so now please excuse me as I go scream into the void.

Dove wanted to cry as she looked out the window at the empty streets of Atlanta as they made their way out of the city. This was nothing like the city that she loved and had grown up around. As much as she tried to hold on, every chance the world got it seemed like it was going to challenge her faith. They had managed to siphon gas from some of the vehicles they were leaving behind in order to hopefully make it to Fort Benning.

There was something deep down in her gut that made her feel like there was something good out there for them. The young woman just had to keep hoping that it was sooner rather than later as she sat in the backseat with Sophia, Carol, and Carl. It definitely wasn’t as comfortable as before with her family and Rick’s all shoved into the same car.

Dove felt a smile cross her face at the discussion about the Grand Canyon. “Can we go,” Sophia piped up from the middle seat. “I’d like to.” Dove looked over Sophia’s head to her sister. The silence was broken by Rick.

“We’d never go anywhere without you guys,” Rick glanced into the rearview mirror for a moment before his gaze shifted back to the road.

A thought crossed Dove’s mind and she let out a chuckle. “I think the only vacation that Sophia’s ever been on is when I, according to Ed, ‘kidnapped’ her and Carol for the weekend when I was living up in Virginia. We took a train into DC for the day, went to a whole bunch of museums. Remember that, bug?” Dove beamed as she stroked her niece’s hair.

Carol cracked a smile. “I remember Sophia being so excited to see the dinosaur bones…”

“And being terrified when she realized how tall they all were compared to her?” Dove finished with a laugh. Lori and Rick laughed from the front seat and Carl looked over at Sophia.

“It’s ok, Sophia. I would probably be real nervous too.” Carl said comfortingly. Dove noticed how Sophia blushed a little bit before she smiled and leaned her head on Carol’s shoulder. Despite the cramped space, Dove could stay in the car with them like this for forever. It was nice. Too nice, she thought, as they crept to a stop.

She felt her throat begin to close up from the anxiety that crept in as they began to make their way through the claustrophobic space on the freeway. As they came to a stop, Dove reached over and pushed the door open before she exited the car with everyone else.

Dove pursed her lips and slipped her hands into her back pockets as she surveyed the road. Lori was right. This was a big fucking graveyard. T-Dog snapped her out of her thoughts as he walked past her. “Come on, y’all. Just look around.” Dove sighed.

“Food, water. Priorities,” she nodded at Carol before she split from them to follow after T-Dog. A tug on her hand stopped her in her tracks.

She glanced down to see Sophia look at her nervously. “Do you have to go that way? What if something happens?”

Dove pulled Sophia into a tight hug as she replied. “Well, if something happens and we have to get back to the car, I’m a real fast runner and we know now that you are too.” Sophia let out a weak laugh at that. “If you get real scared, your mama’s right here. But if you need me, just yell for me. I’ll get to you as quick as I can.” Dove tried to wipe the worry from her face as she leaned over and kissed Sophia on the head. “I promise. I love you, bug.” She pulled away and gave Carol’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “Yell if you need me,” and then she was off.

She heard Carol warn the kids not to look in the cars as she walked past her to T-Dog. “You guys getting gas?” Dove questioned as she shielded her eyes from the sunlight.

“Yep,” T mumbled as he inserted a hose into the gas tank of the car. “You guys go on up ahead. I got this one.” He nodded and Dove turned her head to look at Daryl. The other man just grunted and motioned for her to follow him.

Dove sighed and ran a hand across her forehead. “Think we should save some gas in some of these cars? Maybe we can move them out of the way if we don’t totally empty the tanks…” she trailed off as she looked around.

Daryl turned slightly to look at her, an eyebrow raised. “You know what. You might not really be _that_ stupid after all.”

Dove let out a snort of laughter and her reply was lost as she heard Rick call for Lori to get under the cars. Panic swept through her as she went to run towards her family. A sharp tug on her arm froze her in place as Daryl shook his head and put a finger to his lips. She shoved him, angry as all hell. “I gotta help Sophia.”

“You wanna die? You’re gonna run straight into a mess of walkers,” Daryl hissed back at her before he motioned for her to get low to the ground and follow him. They were headed back towards T-Dog. She wanted to run to Sophia and Carol as fast as she could but she would be no use to them if she got bit.

As she looked down, there was a trail of blood and she had to cover her mouth to keep a scream from coming out of her mouth. She peeked out from behind a truck just in time to see Daryl stab a walker through the back of the head. He motioned for her to get under one of the bodies and Dove froze for a moment. There were a lot of walkers and they were coming. She didn’t have a choice as she lifted a body slightly and slid to the ground, sure to pull it over her. She held her breath to keep the smell of decay from getting into her nose as much as she could. Once it was clear, she sat up quickly. Her heart sank as she took in the sight before her. T-Dog was bleeding. Bad. “Oh shit,” Dove mumbled as Daryl hurried to try to tie a tourniquet around his arm. All other thoughts were gone as she heard Sophia scream.

“Mommy! Dovey, help me,” the little girl’s shrieks cut through the air like a knife. Dove was on her feet quicker than either of the men beside her. She heard someone call after her as she ran in the direction of the screams. She reached the guardrail just in time to see Sophia disappear into the woods, two walkers right behind her.

“Sophia,” Dove called after her and Rick pushed her back.

“Go with Lori and Carol. Now! I got her,” he whispered as he jumped the guardrail and ran after her.

Dove just stood there, stunned. It was like her brain didn’t want to comprehend what was happening. Sophia was being chased by walkers through the woods. Sophia didn’t know the woods. “Two walkers after my baby,” she heard Carol cry before she turned to see Lori trying to hush her. Arms were around her in a few seconds and it too her a minute to realize that it was Glenn.

“What the hell happened,” Glenn whispered at Lori.

“We were under the cars. We thought they were all gone. One of them heard Sophia and tried to get at her under the car so she took off runnin. Rick went after her,” Lori explained in a hushed voice as she tried to calm both Carol and her son down.

Dove felt herself begin to shake in Glenn’s arms as he stroked her hair. “Are you ok?”

Dove felt her chest tighten and she began to cry. “I can’t…I can’t breathe,” she tried to keep her voice low but she just wanted to scream as she felt it. The months of things happening without a break and now Sophia was gone? An anxiety attack had been a long time coming.

Panic flashed across Glenn’s face as he struggled to think of what to do before Dale stepped up and put a hand on Glenn’s shoulder. The Asian boy moved back a few steps as Dale reached forward and took the young woman’s shaking hand in his. “Dove, look at me,” he spoke softly as Dove leaned against the hood of a car and tried to breathe. The world was spinning now, it all started to crash in on her. “Listen to me, you’re having an anxiety attack. I just need you to breathe, honey. Everything’s gonna be just fine.” Dale’s calm, even tone made the world stop spinning just enough for her to begin to focus. “Good. Alright now just focus on your breath, ok. Breathe in…breathe out. Big deep breath in,” Dove tried to listen to what Dale was saying and it was getting easier now. “I know you’re scared right now. We all are. But Rick’s out there looking for Sophia right now. Everything’s gonna be just fine,” Dale nodded and Glenn took a slow step forward and began to rub her shoulder. It took a few more moments before her breathing evened out enough for her to nod at Dale.

Dove gave the older man’s hand a squeeze, “Thank you,” She mumbled as she leaned her head on Glenn’s shoulder.

“I woulda made a hell of a therapist, huh,” Dale mumbled. Dove rolled her eyes as she took a shaky step forward. Rick was back already. He looked around the group.

“Where’s Sophia,” his only answer was blank stares. “She’s not back yet,” his voice broke as he realized that he had lost the little girl once again. As Carol started to cry, Dove took a few shaky steps forward and knelt next to her on the ground.

“It’s gonna be okay,” Dove tried to focus on her breathing again as her older sister clung to her and began to sob. That was the only thing she can focus on for what felt like hours before she heard someone else speak up.

Daryl’s harsh voice got louder as he stepped forward. “Well what are we waitin for? Let’s get back out there and find the little girl.”

Lori placed a gentle hand on Dove’s shoulder and nodded at her. With a nod right back, Dove looped an arm under Carol’s as she and Lori pulled Carol to her feet. “Cmon Carol, let’s get you back to the RV. You need to rest while we wait for Sophia, ok? They’re gonna bring her back real soon.”

~

Dove ended up being the one resting in the RV while Carol waited at the guardrail for anyone to come back with news about Sophia. Soft footsteps made the young woman sit upright from her spot and her expression fell when she saw it was just Lori. The older woman sat down next to her and placed a comforting arm around her. “Rick’s not gonna stop until he finds her. Daryl’s a good tracker. They’re gonna find her,” Lori said as she tried to soothe her.

Dove sniffled and buried her head in her hands. “The last thing I said to her was to yell for me and I would get to her as quick as I could.”

Lori shook her head, “There were too many of em. You woulda died if you tried to get back to her right when the herd came through. It’s not your fault.” Dove hated the fact that Lori was right. Because that meant that Daryl was also right and Sophia was still gone.

“I still coulda done something,” Dove sighed as she looked up at Lori.

The older brunette sighed as she pulled Dove into a one-armed hug, “You did all you could. Now it’s our turn. We’re gonna find her, I promise.”

With that, Dove allowed Lori to lead her back out to the rest of the group. Carol needed her more than ever right now. An appreciative smile back at Lori said all that she had to say as she approached her sister. Dove wrapped an arm around Carol as she took a spot next to her, just staring out into the woods. “You alright,” Carol said in a hushed voice as she stared straight ahead.

“I will be once they get back. We all will. Sophia too,” Dove leaned her head on Carol’s shoulder. Carol didn’t say anything, she just nodded in agreement. Dove sighed as she let her hand fall from Carol’s waist. She didn’t say anything either as her sister reached over and gave her hand a squeeze. Something about the fact that at least she still had Carol after everything they’d been through, even before this, was a comfort.

~

As she heard sticks begin to break, she leaned over the guardrail. “Holy shit, they’re back,” Dove mumbled to Carol. Dove jumped the guardrail, by-passed Rick and ran right up to Daryl. “Did you find anything,” she couldn’t hide the desperation in her voice as she turned on her heel to walk alongside the redneck. She tried her hardest to tune out Carol’s cries.

“Found a trail, but didn’t find her,” Daryl mumbled back before he looked over at the brunette. “ ‘M sorry,” Daryl frowned before he averted his eyes. Dove allowed Glenn to help her back over the guardrail as she wrapped her arms around Carol to try and comfort her. “Out in the dark’s no good,” Daryl told Carol. “We’d just be tripping over ourselves. More people would get lost out there.”

“She’s 12. She can’t be out there on her own,” Carol pleaded.

“I know this is hard, but I’m asking you not to panic. We know she’s still out there,” Rick placed a comforting hand on Carol’s arm.

“We tracked her for a while,” Daryl added.

“We have to make this an organized effort. Daryl knows the woods better than anyone,” Rick continued and Dove’s gaze shifted to the other man. Daryl definitely looked uncomfortable with all of the attention shifted to him. “I’ve asked him to oversee this.”

Dove’s head began to spin again as Rick tried to calm Carol down and reassure her. “How do you know that,” Andrea spoke up from behind her. A quick flash of anger ran through Dove as she imagined herself pushing the other woman down the embankment right in front of them. Instead, she settled on clenching her jaw.

 _At least they’d made sure,_ she thought as she sat down next to Carol on the side of the road. “How could you just leave her out there,” Carol spat that Rick. The anger and hatred in Carol’s voice made Dove want to curl up into a ball. She leaned her head on Carol’s shoulder and turned away from the sheriff.

“Those two walkers were on us, I had to lead them away.” _Bullshit._

Dove closed her eyes, tried to focus on her breathing but she felt the tears start to slip down her face as Carol began to cry too. She was angry and sad enough to allow Andrea to offer comfort and that was saying something.

~

Dove didn’t sleep that night but she was ready the next morning as Rick began to discuss their plan. She placed her hand on the handle of the hatchet as Andrea spoke. “These aren’t the kind of weapons we need, what about the guns.” Dove’s hand tightened around the handle as she whispered to the person next to her.

“If the next thing she said is some pity me bullshit, this hatchet goes through her head,” she huffed.

Daryl whispered back, “Easy there, bird. I don’t think Sophia would want her aunt being a murderer when she gets back.” Dove growled quietly as she picked the hatchet up and stared at it.

Dove placed a hand on Carol’s shoulder, “Stay close to Daryl. If anyone’s gonna find her…”

Carol nodded, “It’s the tracker, right?”

Dove smiled weakly at her sister. “Damn straight.” She tried her best to mind her own business as Andrea and Dale began to argue about the gun and it somehow turned into an argument about whether or not she was suicidal. _The woman definitely isn’t stable enough to handle a gun,_ Dove thought to herself as they began walking. Then again, neither was she but she hadn’t asked for one.

Dove sighed as she leaned her head back and looked up through the trees. She felt extra comfort in the fact that Glenn was behind her. She wasn’t sure when she’d done it, but at one point, she felt Glenn give her hand a squeeze of reassurance before she pulled her hand back up to her side.

Her pulse quickened as she was told to stay put. She watched Daryl approach the yellow tent, wringing her hands as she ran after Carol. “Sophia, sweetie. Are you in there? We’re all here, baby. It’s mommy,” Carol called softly as Dove came up behind her. She wrapped an arm around Carol as Daryl walked into the tent. He walked out and confirmed what she thought. It wasn’t her. Then she heard it. Fucking church bells.

Dove grabbed Glenn’s arm as they came to a stop and started to try to locate the bells. “We’re gonna find her,” he assured her as the group took off again. Dove cursed herself for not keeping up with her exercise when she went to college. She wouldn’t be this out of shape if she did. Dove walked up the steps of the church before Carol and what she saw made her heart sink. Walkers were witting in the church pews. This was sick.

Sophia wasn’t there. Dove felt like a ghost as she walked back into the church with Carol. She sank down in one of the pews and buried her face in her hands as she heard the pew creak. She lifted her head slowly to see Lori sit next to her. Carol’s voice was quiet but what she said hurt Dove more than anything.

“Forgive me, lord. I prayed for safe passage from Atlanta and you provided. I prayed for Ed to be punished for laying his hands on me and for looking at his own daughter with whatever sickness was growing in his soul,” Carol whispered. Dove felt her stomach churn. “I prayed you’d put a stop to it, give me a chance to raise her right, help her not make my mistakes.” Dove bit down on her lip to keep from saying anything. Carol should be able to have this moment, but it hurt her how much her family had really been hurting without her knowledge. Dove buried her face in her hands again as the tears began to pour. “She’s so fearful. She’s so young in her way. She hasn’t had a chance. Praying for Ed’s death was a sin. Please don’t let this be my punishment.” Dove couldn’t handle it anymore. She got up from the pew as quick as she could, a hand pressed to her mouth as she moved towards the door. She took the steps two at a time as she exited the building.

The cool grass hit her hands as she collapsed to the ground outside of the church. Sobs tore out of her throat as she tried to calm herself down. The thought of Ed hurting Sophia in the way that Carol was hinting at in the church was the worst thing she could ever think. Ed was a bastard but she didn’t see any signs of him being capable of that. It made her want to go back and bash his head in even more than Carol already had.

She lifted her head up from the ground as she steadied her breathing and her heart sank as she saw Glenn and Daryl both looking at her from the other side of the building. At least Daryl had the decency to avert his eyes when she noticed him. Glenn just looked on in concern. “What,” she grumbled as she rubbed her eyes.

~

She didn’t like the idea of leaving anyone behind, but it wasn’t like she had a choice. “C’mon,” Daryl caught her attention and pulled her out of her mental fog as he tapped her elbow lightly. She reached out and took Carol’s hand in hers as they began to walk off. She was worried about everyone. Why were they leaving people behind again?

Dove whispered so only Carol could hear. “Why didn’t you tell me,” her voice cracked.

Carol held her head high and sniffled, “We didn’t want to bother you. You were doing so good and I was so proud of you. I didn’t want you to ruin your life for me and Sophia,” she whispered back. “Plus Ed wouldn’t let me.” Dove squeezed her hand tighter as they walked in silence.

Carol broke the silence again as she pulled on Dove’s hand. Her hazel eyes locked on her sister as she sat down on a log and asked about the plan.

“I guess the plan is to whittle us down into smaller and smaller groups,” Daryl mused.

“Carrying knives and pointy sticks,” Andrea complained. “I see you have a gun,” Andrea eyes Lori angrily.

Dove rolled her eyes, “Our ancestors survived with less. You’re lucky that Dale even let you have a pointy stick.”

“Why you want my gun? Take it. I’m sick of the looks you’re giving me,” Lori snapped back as she held the gun out to Andrea. Lori looked tired as she sat on the log next to Carol. Dove let go of her sister’s hand and folded her arms across her chest. “I can’t imagine what you’re going through and I would do anything to stop it, but you have got to stop blaming Rick.” Lori spoke calmly and Carol’s expression softened just a little. “It is in your face every time you look at him. When Sophia ran he didn’t hesitate, did he?”

Dove felt a wave of guilt wash over her as she turned to look away from the two women. She thought she saw a guilty look cross Daryl’s features for a moment before he turned his focus up towards the canopy. “I don’t know that any of us would’ve gone after her the way he did. Made the hard decisions that he had to make or that anybody could have done it any differently.” Dove ran a hand down her face and let out a shaky breath. “Dove, I know you wanted to run after her too,” Lori spoke to her now. “But just think about it. What if you got lost out here too? I know you’re angry that Rick stopped you, but you have to know he did the right thing,” Lori pleaded with her.

Dove paused for a moment before she turned to face Lori again. She uncrossed her arms and threw her hands up in the air before she brought them down to her sides, “Of course I know he did the right thing. I’m angry at myself. Not at him. I could’ve done more. I promised her.”

Lori nodded at her, “Thank you…Now as for everyone else, if you think you can do this without Rick you go right on ahead. I’m not gonna stop you.” Lori had really had enough of everyone’s bullshit. It was enough to knock Andrea out of her funk as she handed the gun back to her.

Then they were moving again. All Dove wanted was to go back to the RV and go to bed, but she doubted that sleep would come again tonight. If it did, she had a feeling that it would be the furthest thing from restful.


	13. Search Party

Dove had nearly jumped out of her skin as a gunshot rang out through the quiet forest. Her hazel eyes had snapped straight to Lori who came to a halt and looked around like a startled animal. “You hear that?”

Daryl spoke up from the head of the group, “We should keep movin if we wanna get back before dark.” He kept the group moving as best he could and Dove waited as Carol walked over the other woman.

“Cmon, Lori,” Carol spoke softly as she placed a hand on Lori’s arm, “Let’s get goin. I’m sure everyone’s just fine.”

Maybe it was motherly instinct, but it didn’t take long for Lori to stop again.

“We all heard the gunshot, Lori,” Daryl spoke up again.

“Why just one gunshot,” Lori sounded panicked. Dove thought she had a point.

“Maybe they took down a walker.” Daryl also had a point.

Lori scoffed, “Please don’t patronize me. You know Rick wouldn’t risk a gunshot to put down one walker.”

Dove sighed and ran a hand through her hair, “Maybe he didn’t. Maybe it’s someone else further off? Some people might not know that sound attracts them.”

That didn’t help soothe Lori’s worries at all, it seemed, since she just stared at the younger woman. “Anyone in our group would do it quietly, you know that.”

Carol rubbed Dove’s arm lightly, “Shouldn’t they have caught up with us by now?”

“Nothin we can do about it anyway,” Daryl started to look around the woods. He was keeping his cool surprisingly well. “Can’t go runnin around these woods chasin echoes.” Lori questioned him yet again and he just shrugged. “Keep workin our way back to the highway. Look for Sophia as we go.”

Dove nodded her head. That definitely sounded like a better plan than wandering around the woods following a gunshot that they could barely tell where it came from.

Andrea spoke up,” I’m sure they’ll meet up with us back at the RV.” _The most sense she’s made all damn day._

Any positive thought that Dove had towards the blonde woman quickly left her head as she stepped towards her sister. “I’m sorry for what you’re going through,” she heard Andrea say. Dove felt Carol’s grip on her wrist tighten as she turned on her heel to face the two. “I know how you feel.” Her stomach turned. _Sophia isn’t dead it’s not the same thing._

“I suppose you do,” Carol replied. “The thought of her. Out here by herself…” Carol trailed off again as Dove stepped forward and placed a comforting arm around her sister. “It’s the not knowing that’s killing me,” Carol’s voice cracked. “I just keep hoping and praying she doesn’t wind up like Amy.” Dove felt her eyes widen at this. It was a very subtle way of telling Andrea that she had no idea what they were feeling. At least Andrea knew. At least she got to mourn. All they had right now was an empty Sophia shaped hole in their lives that would either be filled with dirt or an alive, but very scared, little girl.

Andrea did not look the least bit happy as she took one of Carol’s hands in hers. “We’re all hoping and praying with you, for what it’s worth.” _It’s not worth shit_ , Dove thought.

Lost in her thoughts, Dove took a step backward as Daryl walked closer to them. She narrowed her eyes slightly at him as she looked him up and down. She was five seconds away from losing it but what he said surprised her. “I’ll tell ya what it’s worth,” he looked between all three of them. “Not a damn thing.” Dove’s eyebrows shot up as she opened her mouth to reply, but Dixon just continued. “It’s a waste of time all this hopin and prayin. Cause we’re gonna locate that little girl, she’s gonna be just fine.” Her hazel eyes shifted towards her sister who looked just about as astounded as Dove felt. Her heart leapt up into her throat; at least there was someone else who hadn’t totally given up on the fact that Sophia could still be out there somewhere. “Am I the only one zen around here? Good lord.”

The corner of Dove’s mouth quirked up into a small smile as she met Lori’s eye. The other woman looked just as amused as they started off after the redneck once again. Even in the end of the world, people were full of surprises.

Dove fell back from walking with her sister and fell into step next to Rick’s wife. “I’m sure everyone’s just fine, Lor.” Dove sighed as she gave Lori’s shoulder a light pat. She turned to the older woman, a small smile on her face. “Ya know what one of Sophia’s favorite movies was growin up? Peter Pan.” Lori laughed quietly. “She loved that stupid song about following the leader,” Dove chuckled as Lori let out a small snort of laughter.

“I know exactly what you’re talkin about,” Lori smiled as she rubbed Dove’s arm. “We’re gonna find her. They won’t stop lookin until we do.” For the first time all day, Dove felt some sort of peace as her gaze fell on the man leading the group.

“I see that now,” Dove turned and forced a smile.

The woods were quiet for a while before they decided they should just circle back to the highway. It was a mess and Dove felt like she was on a different planet. She just wanted to make it back to the RV and sleep but apparently, the world had other plans.

“How far are we,” Lori sighed.

“About a hundred yards. As the crow flies,” Daryl called back over his shoulder.

“Too bad we’re not birds,” Andrea grumbled.

“Speak for yourself,” Glenn glanced over his shoulder at Dove.

She flipped him off and grinned, “Fuck yourself.” The lighter mood was broken by Andrea screaming for help. “God she’s gonna get us all killed,” Dove hissed as they ran off towards where the screams were coming from.

Her eyes almost bugged out of her head as she laid eyes on a woman on horseback. Did she just say that Carl was shot? Lori didn’t even ask question as she started to pull the pack off her back and handed it towards the younger brunette. “Wha…” Dove shook her head as she tried to take in the new information.

“We don’t know this girl,” Daryl tried to talk Lori back but she was already on the horse. Another few seconds and they were gone. Dove clutched Lori’s backpack in her hand as Daryl snapped at a walker to shut up. Her hazel eyes scrutinized Glenn and she gave him a soft slap to the back of the head as they started moving again.

“Put your eyes back in your head, Glenn.”

* * *

“Climb down out of my asshole, old man,” Daryl growled at Dale and Dove just rolled her eyes as she helped Carol over the guardrail.

“Seriously, Dale. He tried to stop her but Lori wasn’t having any of it. Can’t say I really blame her with how the past few days have been,” Dove shifted her gaze back to the older man.

“Besides, Rick sent her. She knew Lori’s name and Carl’s. She wasn’t just some random person out there in the woods,” Daryl stalked back off towards the RV. Dove leaned against the guardrail next to her sister.

Carol sighed and leaned her head on Dove’s shoulder. “We’re never gonna find her if we keep fightin.”

Dove frowned and brushed a hand through Carol’s short hair. “Definitely not figthin as much as we were in Atlanta. That has to count for something.” She felt Carol nod as she closed her eyes and tried to focus on her breathing again.

“You think Carl’s alright,” Carol spoke softly.

“Has to be. That woman said that he was alive. If someone’s taking care of him, he has a way better chance than most people do right now,” Dove sighed.

The first thing that the group noticed when they finally pulled back together was that T-Dog looked bad. All of them looked tired and they had all definitely seen better days, but he looked _bad._ Dove tried to keep her hands from shaking as she pressed a clean shirt to the man’s head. “You’re burnin up, man.”

T looked out of it as he chuckled, “Ya know, there’s better ways to tell a man that he’s hot.” Dove rolled her eyes and pressed the t-shirt into his hand as she stood up again.

Glenn looked on in worry as he pulled his hat off and ran a hand through his hair, “He alright?”

“He’s got a fever but his sense of humor is just peachy,” Dove threw her hands in the air before bringing them to rest on top of her head. She shook her head as Dale began to talk about moving on from the highway.

“I can’t do it. We can’t just leave,” Carol pleaded.

Dale shook his head, “The group is split. We’re scattered and weak.”

“What if she comes back and we’re not here,” Carol’s voice got louder. “It could happen.”

Dove shifted weight to one foot as she moved her hands down to scratch the back of her neck. “She’s right,” her gaze shifted around the group, fixated on her sister for a moment, before her gaze shifted to Daryl. He seemed to be the only one really hopeful so it was worth a shot. “She comes back, we’re not here and what? She runs off into the woods and gets herself killed? I won’t…I won’t leave. You guys all go one then. Me and Carol will stay.”

Daryl shook his head, “That’s a real bad plan. If we wanna do something, we gotta plan for this. I say tomorrow morning is enough to pull up stakes,” he continued as Dove felt Carol grip her arm. “Give us a chance to rig a big sign. Leave her some supplies. I’ll hold here tonight, stay with the RV.” He pointed towards the camper.

“If the RV is stayin, I am too,” Dale shrugged his shoulders.

“Thank you,” Carol smiled a little bit.

It did make Dove a little wary that Andrea was staying and Glenn was being sent off. “Me? Why is it always me,” Glenn rolled his eyes. Dove couldn’t help but agree with him. Dale did have a good point about the farm and T-Dog. She really wasn’t in the mood to lose anyone else.

“Get him to that farm and see if they have any antibiotics,” Dale explained and Dove nodded her head as she listened. She didn’t notice Daryl move until she heard him shuffle around.

“Why’d you wait until now to say anything,” the man shook his head as he brushed past the younger woman. “Got my brother’s stash.” Dove stepped forward with wide eyes as she took in all the drugs that were in one bag.

“I knew that fucker was methed out of his mind,” she whispered to Carol. Carol hushed her younger sister as they looked on.

“Some kick ass painkillers,” Daryl tossed a bottle towards Glenn. “Doxycycline,” Dove wrinkled her nose as she watched Daryl toss another bottle towards the Asian man. “Not the generic stuff neither. That shit’s first class.”

“Why did Merle have all this stuff,” Andrea questioned as her eyes scanned the bag.

“Old prescriptions and shit,” Daryl spoke as he picked the bag up from the hood of the car, “ And Merle got the clap on occasion.”

Carol mumbled a quiet, “gross,” from beside her sister.

Dove turned her head and wrinkled her nose at Daryl as he walked back over towards the motorcycle. She called towards him, “Ya know, I never thought I’d have to ask you to not overshare!”

* * *

Dove never particularly liked being on watch, she felt like it put too much pressure on her. Still, it didn’t feel like she had much of a choice with Daryl and Andrea out lookin again and Carol crying in the back of the RV, there was no way sleep was coming to her easily tonight. So, with a blanket tossed over her shoulder and her Walkman in her pocket, she found herself on top of the RV. “To what do I owe the pleasure of your company, Sawyer,” Dale spoke softly as he stared out towards the road.

“Can’t sleep. Worried about Sophia. Carol’s cryin,” she trailed off as she pulled her blanket tight around her shoulders.

“Worried about Daryl and Andrea out there in the dark,” Dale questioned and she thought she saw a small smirk on his face but it was gone when she faced him.

“A little bit. But if you tell either of them about that, I swear I will push you off this roof,” she chuckled as she reached into the pocket of her coat and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. “I ever tell you about my mom?” She questioned as she placed a cigarette between her lips and took a few moments to light it. Dale shook his head in the negative. “My mama was the best. Carol’s mom didn’t like her much. Her parents got divorced when Carol was small but her mama still insisted that he left her for my mom,” she snorted and shook her head. “She would call my mama a ‘no good man stealin gypsy bitch’. No of course, I had no idea what that meant when I was little so I had no idea why she didn’t like me.”

“A gypsy bitch,” Dale nodded slowly. “That’s certainly colorful.”

Dove chuckled as she waved some smoke out of her face. “A few generations down, some of her family immigrated from Romania so I guess to her it made sense.” She paused. “Carol’s mom was a hateful bitch but my mom treated Carol like she was her own whenever she came to visit.”

Dale smiled a little as he turned to look at Dove, “You guys are far apart in age, right?”

“12 years,” Dove confirmed with a smile as she stared up at the sky. She pointed her finger, “You see that star right there? That’s Spica. My mom used to sit out under the stars with me and she would always point that one out to me.”

Dale quirked an eyebrow, “Why that one?”

“I’m a Virgo,” Dove shrugged her shoulders and pulled up the sleeve of her shirt. “That’s why I got this. It’s the sign for Virgo hanging from a crescent moon. My mom loved that shit. She used to do palm readings and stuff for her friends too when she had free time.”

Dale smiled lightly. “Your mom sounds like quite the fascinating lady.”

Dove sighed and pulled the blanket tighter around herself, “Yeah…she was.” She cleared her throat, “Ya know, if you wanna go down and get some rest, I got this for a little while. I think I’ll wait for Andrea and Daryl to get back. Carol might be asleep by then and maybe you can take back over,” she shifted her gaze to the older man.

He looked like he was ready to fight with her about it, but there was a look in her eyes that told him it wasn’t worth it. She wasn’t leaving this roof until she heard something. A hand on her shoulder was all she needed to tell her Dale was going to leave her in peace for a while. After a few minutes of silence, she sighed and reached into her pocket. As she slipped one earphone in, she couldn’t help but smile as she hit the play button on her Walkman. I have a dream started to play and she sank back into the lawn chair. Her eyes scanned the road and woods in front of her as she hoped for any sign of life as ABBA started to soothe her.

* * *

A _clunk_ sound shook her out of the different world she had sunken into after she’d flipped the cassette to the B-side. She hit pause right at the peek of one of her favorite songs as she turned her head to look at the end of the RV. Her heart leapt in her chest as she saw Daryl peek over the edge at her. “Didn’t find her,” Daryl shook his head as he stepped onto the roof and Dove sank back into the chair that she didn’t even notice herself rise out of.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips as Daryl sank down to the roof beside her, his legs hanging over the edge of the roof of the RV as he stared out into the woods. It was silent as Dove held her pack of cigarettes out to him and waited. “Least you tried,” Dove mumbled as she started to fiddle with the crystal around her neck.

“Found a guy out there. Poor bastard hung himself but didn’t shoot himself in the head,” Daryl grunted as he blew smoke out into the night sky.

Dove rubbed her forehead, “Anyone ever tell you that you’re real bad at starting a conversation?”

“Nah,” Daryl shrugged his shoulders as Dove raised an eyebrow at him, “Don’t really talk to many people.”

Dove stared blankly for a moment, “Was that…was that supposed to be a joke?” Daryl’s answer was a shrug and Dove’s response was a short chuckle.

She watched as he sat up slightly and reached into his pocket, “Meant to show you this before. Found it when I was searchin through one of the cars when we got back from lookin before.” Dove stared at him as he pulled a small chain out from his pocket and held it out of her.

The brunette stared for a moment more before she reached a hand out from beneath her blanket and carefully took the small chain from it. “What is it,” she squinted at it as she examined the small charm that hung from the chain.

“St. Anthony pendant. One of the cars had it hangin from the rearview so I grabbed it,” Daryl flicked his cigarette out into the road. “Patron saint of lost things. Figured it couldn’t hurt. They weren’t usin it anymore anyway.”

Dove just stared at the small pendant in her hand and wiped at her face as she felt tears spring up in her eyes. There was a sharp intake of breath as Dove nodded her head before pulling the pendant over her head and settled it right next to her crystal. “Thank you,” she trailed off as she stared out into the woods. She sniffled again as she cleared her throat. “Should probably go get Dale so he can take over again. Told him I’d only keep watch until ya’ll got back and I don’t want him bein nosey.” Daryl laughed at that. Dove sighed as she rose to her feet and she looked back and forth from the woods to her feet as Daryl stood up and they walked to the ladder together.

“You wanna go down first,” he motioned with his hand.

Dove nodded and chewed on the inside of her cheek for a moment. “Yeah.” She paused before she reached forward and wrapped one arm around Daryl in an awkward sort of hug. She felt him tense up during the brief second, just as she felt the tears start to roll down her face. “Thank you, Daryl,” she smiled softly as she gave his arm a squeeze before she descended down the ladder.

She wasn’t surprised to see Dale and Andrea waiting around the front of the RV as she rounded the corner. There was silence between everyone as Dove looked back down at the ground before she shuffled forward and into RV as Daryl held the door open. She heard lighter footsteps on the roof as she settled down in bed next to her sister and she was somewhat comforted by the fact that Andrea was on watch and not Dale. The poor old guy needed some rest; hell, they all did.


	14. Cherokee Rose

Dove wasn’t sure how long she’d slept for, but the sun was already shining and the RV was moving when she opened her eyes. Bleary eyed and still feeling tired, she rolled over onto her back as Carol shook her awake. “Mornin, sleepyhead,” Carol smiled a little as she brushed Dove’s hair back off her face.

Dove sighed as she rose into a sitting position. “How long was I out for?”

“A decent time,” Carol sighed as she sat next to her sister. “They wanted to wake you up when we were setting things out for Sophia, but I told them that you needed your rest.”

Dove scoffed and ran a hand through her hair before she pulled a hairtie from her wrist. “You’re one to talk about needing sleep,” Dove mumbled as she held the hairtie between her teeth. She was pulling her hair back as she listened to her sister.

“Shush. Daryl held true to his word. Made a nice big sign on the back window of a car and all that. Said someone should try to circle back at least once a day until she comes back,” Carol sounded confident in the efforts of the redneck and Dove couldn’t help but agree with her.

A few moments later, they came to a stop as people came filing out of a big farmhouse. Dove followed close behind Carol as she descended the steps. The members of the household stood back and Dove couldn’t help but observe them once she heard that Carl was alright. The older man, Hershel, stood close to a small blonde girl and a boy who had to be her boyfriend by the way she clung to his arm. The woman from the woods who had spirited Lori away to be with her son, an older blonde woman, and a tall young man with curly black hair all stood on the steps of the house. 

Dove’s attention shifted to Shane as Rick spoke. “We would’ve lost Carl if not for him.” Dove paused for a moment before she followed Carol over and embraced Lori right along with her. The last thing she expected was to be pulled into another funeral, but that was what life had in store for them it seemed.

The dark haired man cleared his throat before he looked at the man who owned the house. “Hershel? Now that this is all handled…think we can do that thing for Otis now?” His words were careful and Dove saw the older blonde start to tear up. She could only guess who Otis was.

Hershel was a well spoken man and gave a nice service, even if Dove wasn’t so sure what she believed in anymore. Dove’s attention shifted to Shane again as Hershel attempted to direct him to speak. “I’m not very good at it, sorry.” Shane twitched slightly and Dove moved her hand up to clutch her necklace. Something about the way he was acting was just…off. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but it felt wrong.

“You were the last one with him,” Patricia began to cry again. “You shared his final moments. Please.” She began to plead and Dove stared at her feet. “I need to know his death had meaning.”

Shane stepped forward to speak and the whole group seemed to go silent. “We were about done. Almost out of ammo. We were down to pistols by then. I was limpin, it was bad. Ankle all swollen up. ‘We’ve gotta save the boy.’ See that’s what he said. He gave me his backpack, shoved me ahead. He said he would take the rear and cover me.” Dove’s gaze shifted around the group. The dark haired young man from before clenched his jaw as he stared across the group at Shane. Carol reached out and Dove reached back and instinctively gave her hand a comforting squeeze. “And when I looked back…”Shane stopped and walked forward. “If not for Otis, I never would’ve made it out alive. That goes for Carl too.” Dove’s eyes locked with Dale across the group as the man with the curly hair shook his head and began to stomp back to the house. Dale didn’t look like he bought it either. Maybe she wasn’t crazy after all.

* * *

“Hey,” Dove turned slightly at the unrecognizable voice, only to see the young man from before. She raised an eyebrow as he approached; he looked less miserable than before but she couldn’t blame him. “Sorry if I spooked ya, Hershel just told me I should come get ya. They’re talkin about goin to look for that little girl.”

“Sophia,” Dove stated as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

“Right, sorry…you’re her aunt, I think the sheriff said,” he raised an eyebrow at her.

“’S right. Name’s Dove…Sawyer,” she held her hand out and the young man shook it, maybe too enthusiastically.

“Julian. Julian Montgomery. Now you’re just gonna wanna head up to that silver car right up there. Maggie’s bringing a map for ya’ll to look at.” He pointed towards the small group gathered right in the spot he’d said.

“Thanks. Think you can help my friend Glenn over there put up his tent? He acts like he’s good at it but he really sucks,” Dove mumbled as she patted the younger man’s arm in thanks before she began to speed walk off.

“Sure thing,” she heard the man reply from behind her.

As she approached, she heard Hershel almost scold Rick. “Not you, not today. You gave three units of blood. You wouldn’t be hiking five minutes in this heat before passing out. And Shane, push that ankle now, you’ll be laid up for a month.”

Dove slid into the space between Andrea and who must have been Maggie and spoke up, “I’ll take Rick’s spot.”

Rick shook his head, “No I don’t think that’s a good idea. You should stay here with Carol and…”

“And what? Mope around and wish that I was out there able to do something? Besides, Sophia might not respond well to everyone. She doesn’t,” she trailed off and took a deep breath, “she doesn’t trust a lot of people. Odds of her coming out of wherever she is if she hears my voice are a lot higher than some strangers. No offense.”

There was a pause before Shane sighed, removed his baseball hat, and ran a hand over his now bald head. “Bird’s got a point.”

Daryl let out an annoyed grunt as he reached out for the map. “Look’s like it’s just me, then.”

Rick sighed and pinched his nose, “Daryl…”

“I work better alone,” Daryl said as he surveyed the map.

“Well that’s too damn bad, Dixon.” Dove felt her anger at the man flare up again. “Because like I said. It doesn’t seem like alone is gonna bring Sophia out of hiding anytime soon.”

The tension in the air was thick before Daryl spoke again as he pushed the map back over towards her. Dove caught Andrea’s eye and raised an eyebrow at her. The older woman just shrugged her shoulders. “We head back to the creek then. Work our way from there.”

Shane was going to go back to the road and Dove felt a little bit better about everything before Shane spoke again. “We can’t have our people out there with just knives.”

“We don’t just have knives. Daryl’s got his crossbow, I’ve got my crowbar. We’re fine,” Dove planted her hands on the hood of the car.

“Not saying you won’t be fine today, but what about tomorrow. Everyone needs gun training. We’ve been promising them,” Shane said. Dove rolled her eyes and patted the hood of the car.

“Alright well, you let me know when we’re heading out,” she pointed across the hood at Daryl before she turned on her heel and caught sight of Carol. She caught up with her as she started to set up camp. “I just wanted to let you know…I’m goin with Daryl to look for Soph.” She looked down at her feet as she heard Carol stop moving.

Carol sighed. “Alright. Just…please be careful. I don’t need to lose you too,” Carol looked up at her younger sister from her spot on the ground.

Dove chuckled and gave Carol’s shoulder a playful shove. “I think the only thing I have to worry about it Daryl leavin my ass out in the woods if he decides I’m too annoying.” She caught a glimpse of the man as he walked towards the house, so she leaned closer to her sister, a devious sparkle in her eye, “Or he pisses me off and I give him an old ‘one-two’ with old trusty here,” she waved her crowbar close to Carol.

Carol rolled her eyes and slapped the weapon away from her, “Just behave yourself and be careful, _please.”_

“Yes, mom,” Dove called over her shoulder as she turned and walked off.

Julian stopped what he was doing as he saw Maggie approach. He raised a hand in greeting, “Hey, Mags! You meet Glenn yet?” He called and a glare from Glenn went unnoticed as the brunette woman shook her head.

“No, but I was lookin for him.” Maggie turned her attention to Glenn. “I hear you’re fast on your feet and know how to get in and out.” Julian let out a quiet snort of laughter as Maggie continued. “Got a pharmacy run. You in?”

Glenn didn’t seem to know what to say and, thankfully, Dale interrupted. Julian tried to bite back another laugh once Maggie walked off to saddle up a horse for the new guy. Glenn glanced between the three men around him, “Horse?”

Julian couldn’t hold it in anymore and laughed, “Ever ridden one before man?” Glenn shook his head as a look of concern washed over his face. “Don’t worry, dude. It’s just like riding a bike. Except the bike is alive and can buck you off if you…”

“Julian.” A loud voice from the house interrupted his as the small blonde stepped out onto the porch and waved him towards her.

“Ah, nevermind. Let me know if you guys need anymore help later,” he nodded at the members of the new group. “Good luck, Glenn.” Once the young man was far enough away, Dale spoke up.

“What a strange boy,” Dale shook his head.

T-Dog rolled his eyes, “Man almost threw up when he saw my arm last night. Don’t think they’ve seen other people in months. Just let it go, man.”

* * *

Dove wasn’t surprised that she almost missed Daryl leaving and it was only by the good grace of Rick Grimes that she was able to catch him before he left without her. “It puts you off the hook. You don’t owe us anything,” Rick called over to him as Dove stopped behind the man with the crossbow.

Daryl paused a moment, “My other plans fell through. C’mon,” he walked past her with an angry look on his face.

“What was that all about,” Dove took long strides to keep up with the older man.

“Nothin, don’t worry about it. Now be quiet. I need to be able to hear out here,” Daryl grunted as he walked into the tree line.

Dove sighed as she stepped into the trees behind him. “Sorry, guess I’m a bit of a nervous talker,” she whispered.

“Haven’t noticed,” Daryl hissed back.

Dove chewed on the inside of her cheek to stay quiet as best she could. She wasn’t necessarily in the mood to be on Daryl’s bad side today. So, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and wrapped her thin fingers around the pendant that the same angry person had given to her last night.

“You alright back there,” Daryl turned his head.

Dove’s eyes snapped open and she felt heat rush to her cheeks. With a shake of her head, she let go of her necklace and moved to catch up to him. “Sorry, didn’t realize that I’d fallen behind.”

“You best keep up. Don’t need your sister on my ass for losin you while we’re out here lookin for Sophia,” he looked her up and down as she stepped up alongside him.

Dove scoffed and rolled her eyes, “Shit.”

“What?”

“You fucking sound like Carol,” she rolled her eyes and motioned for him to get moving again.

Daryl huffed as he started moving through the trees again. It didn’t take too long for them to reach a clearing. Dove, however, was surprised as she stepped out into the bright sunshine. She stared ahead and her heart leapt as she caught sight of a house. “You think she could be in there,” she turned her head to look at Daryl.

“Don’t know, could be. Let’s go,” he spoke quietly before he motioned for her to follow him. “Keep that thing close,” he pointed to the crowbar in her hand.

Dove nodded as she tightened her grip on the weapon as they approached the home. Dove felt her pulse quicken as they walked through each room. She wanted to call out for Sophia but she knew that wasn’t the best idea. A walker could hear them, then they would all be up shit creek. It was as Daryl picked up a can of tuna that she heard it. Something moved in the closet. She stared at it as the man slowly rose into a standing position and began to move towards the sound. All the horror movies she’d ever seen told her it was an awful idea, but Daryl pulled the little door open before she could protest.

A sharp exhale left her as she felt her sense of hope deflate like a balloon. There was nothing in the cupboard except for blankets and a pillow. She stepped up next to him and stared down at the small pile on the ground for a few moments. A hand on her arm snapped her out of it and she turned her head slowly to see Daryl put his hand back on his crossbow. “C’mon. Maybe she’s outside,” he was already out the door, calling for her before she even had a chance to move.

Dove’s feet carried her quickly as she ran out the door and towards the opposite end of the clearing from Daryl. She yelled for Sophia over and over again for what felt like hours but was really only minutes. Her hazel eyes started to fill with tears as she turned around and spotted Daryl. He had a white flower in his hand. _What the fuck._

 _Daryl must have great hearing_ , she thought as he turned around once she started to approach. “Can you hold this,” he held the flower out to her. Her eyes widened as she stared at his hand before her gaze shifted back to his face. “It’s for your sister. A Cherokee rose,” he explained. Dove stared blankly. “You know, right?”

Dove raised an eyebrow, “The…state flower of Georgia?”

Daryl rolled his eyes and shoved the flower into her grasp, “Can’t believe you don’t know the story.”

Dove sighed as she began to follow Daryl back to their new camp. “I…I think I wanna hear the story,” she looked down at the flower in her hand as Daryl peeked over his shoulder at her. “I mean, if you’re alright with talkin in the woods and all that.”

Daryl paused for a moment, just long enough for Dove to keep up and match his stride. “Just an old wives tale, I think. Heard it from school…my mom, don’t really remember. Just remember the story.”

Dove chuckled and nudged Daryl’s arm with her elbow as they walked, “I don’t mind old wives tales. Just as good as any other story. I wanna hear it. If you got this,” she held the flower up, “for my sister because of a story or whatever, it must be a good one. You don’t seem like a man who does or says much if it doesn’t have a purpose.”

Daryl squinted at her for a moment before he turned his attention forward with a nod of his head. “Alright. But I’ll tell ya when we get back. Don’t wanna repeat myself.” Dove rolled her eyes and kept her mouth shut the rest of the walk back. He was doing a lot for her family, that was the least she could do for him.

Dove let out a low whistle as she looked around the clean RV. “I cleaned it up. Wanted it to look nice for her,” Carol spoke from the small table. A smile crossed Dove’s face as Daryl reached back and took the flower from her. She was careful as she slipped past him and took a seat across from her sister.

“For a second, I thought I was in the wrong place,” Daryl replied. Dove reached across the table and gave Carol’s hand a squeeze.

“You’ve really outdone yourself this time, Care,” Dove patted Carol’s hand once more before she folded her hands on the table in front of her. Her eyes settled on the Cherokee rose that was now placed on the counter.

“A flower,” Carol asked.

“It’s a Cherokee rose,” Daryl motioned towards the flower. Dove raised an eyebrow at the older man expectantly. He had told her that there was a story, she didn’t want to have to ask. He sighed and stepped closer to the table. “The story is that when American soldiers were moving Indians off their land on the trail of tears, the Cherokee mothers were grieving and crying so much ‘cause they were losing their little ones along the way.” Dove caught herself starting to chew on her thumb nail as she listened to Daryl talk. A glance over at her sister showed that she was just as caught up in the story. “Ya know, exposure and disease…starvation. A lot of them just disappeared. So the elders, they said a prayer; asked for a sign to uplift the mothers’ spirits, give them strength and hope.” Carol’s gaze settled on the flower on the counter, but Dove’s focus didn’t shift from the man as he spoke.

Dove was good at picking up lies. She had to be in her old life before everything ended. She could pick up the slightest tell in most people after knowing them for a little while. But Daryl didn’t seem like a liar or insincere. She felt tears start to form in her eyes and she raised a hand to wipe them away as he continued. “The next day, this rose started to grow right where the mothers’ tears fell. I’m not fool enough to think there’s any flowers blooming for my brother. But, I believe this one bloomed for your little girl.”

Dove let out a quiet laugh along with her sister as a smile finally showed on Carol’s face for the first time in days. Once Daryl had left, Dove took a deep breath and spoke. “Damn that was quite a story,” she chuckled as she wiped tears from her cheeks.

Carol nodded her head, “Did you know about that?”

Dove shook her head, “Nope. Daryl’s the one who picked the flower for you and everything. I didn’t even know what he was talkin about when he mentioned it in the woods…I get it now, though.” Dove smiled at her sister. “Unless it was just an excuse for Daryl to bring you a flower because he’s got a crush on you,” Dove wiggled her eyebrows as she ducked to avoid a swat from Carol.

The short-haired woman shook her head as she let out a laugh, “You cut that out!”

“Oh come on, he’s not that bad,” Dove laughed as she tossed a crumb of food towards her sister.

Carol raised an eyebrow at her, “You been spending some time with him the past few days. Are you…what do ya call it? Projecting?” A sly look was on Carol’s face as she went back to her knitting.

Dove let out a loud, incredulous laugh as she shook her head, “See now that? That’s taking it way too far!”

It was strange, but it was the most at peace that Dove had probably felt since Sophia had gone missing. Still, she couldn’t help but feel just a little guilty for it. “You were right, back on the road.”

“Huh,” Dove tilted her head.

“If anyone’s gonna find Sophia, it’s probably a tracker,” Carol nodded her head.

Dove stood up and walked around the table before she settled back down and leaned her head on her sister’s shoulder. “I hope you’re right.”


	15. Chupacabra

Julian didn’t know what to think of the new group that had just come onto the farm. He didn’t trust the one guy, that was for sure. He’d gone into the city with Otis and had come back without him. Otis was a good person, but it didn’t sound right. He probably would’ve done anything to save a little kid but the guy seemed sketchy. He felt sort of relieved when it seemed like not everyone bought his bullshit either.

He was jumpy as he waited for Maggie to get back from her run to the store. Since Otis, the thought of people leaving the farm felt like they were marching off to their deaths. A smile was on his face as he finally spotted Maggie riding up on her horse with Glenn. That guy didn’t seem too bad, at least. Unable to contain himself, he leapt off the porch and had the reins of Glenn’s horse in his hands before the other man could say anything. “Let me help you put the horses back,” he said brightly.

Maggie and Glenn exchanged a look before Maggie replied. “Sure thing. Thanks for all your help out there, Glenn.”

Julian looked over his shoulder as the other man hurried off to join the rest of his group by the tents as the dark haired woman from before and her redneck companion came out from the trees. “What do you think,” he questioned Maggie before he clicked his tongue and began to lead to horse to the stable.

“Nothin to think. They find that little girl, odds are my daddy’s gonna make them leave,” Maggie shrugged her shoulders from atop the horse.

Julian nodded his head slowly, “You see anything out there?”

“We didn’t see her out there if that’s what you’re askin me, Jude.” Maggie shook her head before she let out a long sigh.

Julian’s shoulders slumped. He couldn’t help but stare out at the barn in the distance as he opened the door to the horse’s pen. A shiver ran down his back before he averted his eyes. “Better than the alternative, I guess.”

~

Dove rested somewhat easily that night, she felt some comfort in the fact that the next day would mean the search was in full swing. She still hated doing the laundry, though. She would rather be out there in the woods looking for Sophia, but Carol had roped her into her chore. “C’mon. No one wants to help me with this. Andrea’s off tryin’ to play Annie Oakley somewhere and Lori’s still sleepin.”

“I wish I was still sleepin,” Dove grumbled as she picked up a basket of clothes. She squinted her hazel eyes at the closest well. “Jesus, what happened over there?”

Carol shook her head. “You missed it. They sent Glenn down into the well. Apparently there was a walker down there.” Dove opened her mouth to reply but Carol cut her off. “I know you woulda raised all types of hell if you were here, but Glenn’s fine. You’ve seen him.”

Dove huffed and blew a stray hair out of her eyes. “I’m gonna give that little bastard a piece of my mind for not tellin me about that. When I’m done with him, he’ll wanna go back down that well.” She let out a chuckle.

It felt like hours, but it wasn’t too long until she was sitting on top of a picnic table, basket of wet clothes next to her. She handed Carol a wet shirt to hang up as Lori stepped out of her tent. “Mornin, princess,” Dove called over cheerfully, “Nice of you to join us.”

Lori managed a weak smile as she walked over and greeted the two sisters. “Can’t believe I slept in.”

“You probably needed it,” Carol smiled at her.

“Yeah, I think we all need to take turns sleeping in. It feels amazing,” Dove yawned as she ran a hand through her ponytail.

“You feelin ok,” Carol scrutinized Lori carefully as the other woman nodded. “I have an idea I wanted to run by you two. That big kitchen of theirs got me thinking, I wouldn’t mind cooking in a real kitchen again.” Dove smiled as she thought about Carol’s cooking. She definitely wasn’t a five-star chef by any means, but Carol was a good cook. There was no doubt about that. “Maybe we all pitch in and make dinner for Hershel and his family tonight. Kind of looking for things to keep my mind occupied.”

Dove leaned back on her hands with a heavy sigh as she looked up at the sky. She really wanted to be out there. She wanted to help look for Sophia, but she knew Carol would fight her on it. Maybe the right place for her to be was here on the farm; she needed to be with her sister.

“Seems like the least we could do,” Lori agreed.

Dove nodded her head, “Yeah sure. I’ll try to help. I’m not real good in the kitchen, but I’ll try my best.” She flashed her sister a quick smile.

“You mind extending the invitation,” Carol smiled at Lori. Would feel more right comin from you,” Carol reasoned.

Dove eyed Lori. “You’re like our unofficial First Lady,” Carol joked.

Lori and Dove both rolled their eyes but Dove let out a snort of laughter. “President Rick Grimes? I don’t remember votin, but that sounds about right,” she raised an eyebrow at Lori and raised a hand quick enough to block a clothespin from hitting her face.

Meanwhile, Julian had made his way over to the group by the car. He felt like he should be trying to help them look for that little girl. Every person out there could make a difference in finding her or not. He would want people out there looking for his sister like this if he had any idea where she was.

“She might have gone further east than we’ve been so far,” Rick stated as he laid the map out in front of them.

“I’d like to help,” Jimmy spoke up first and Julian narrowed his eyes at the younger man. Hershel would kick his ass for trying. Jimmy was just a kid, but Julian was grown enough to make his own decisions. “I know the area pretty well and stuff.

“I think I know the area better than you, Jim,” Julian spoke quietly as he approached the group.

“Hershel’s okay with this?” G _ood question._ Julian would like to believe Jimmy, but he couldn’t help but think the kid was full of shit trying to look cool in front of his girlfriend.

“Nothing about what Daryl found screams Sophia to me,” Shane spoke from the car.

Shane gave Julian the creeps. “They found Elizabeth Smart nine months after she went missing on pure chance of someone noticing the people who took her,” he remembered seeing something about it when he was younger and it just stuck with him. Shane might be a cop, but it seemed like he wasn’t too invested in the search.

“Whoever slept in that cupboard was no bigger than yay-high,” Daryl held his hand out to about elbow height. Definitely seemed like a little kid and unless Georgia was suddenly overflowing with feral children, Shane was full of shit.

“Maybe we’ll pick up her trail again,” Rick sounded hopeful.

“No maybe about it. I’m gonna borrow a horse,” Daryl pointed at the map. _Hershel won’t be happy about that_ , Julian thought but didn’t speak. He didn’t want to get on the bad side of this guy.

“Good idea,” T-Dog spoke up, “Maybe you’ll see your Chupacabra up their too.” A short laugh echoed from behind Julian and he turned to see Dove, still perched on the picnic table, shake her head.

“Chupacabra,” Rick inquired.

“You never heard this,” Dale sighed. “Our first night in camp, Daryl tells us that the whole thing reminds him of a time he went squirrel hunting and he saw a Chupacabra.” Julian shuddered at the thought of the goat sucking monster; Jimmy laughed. Julian gave him a quick slap to the back of the head as Daryl spoke again.

“What are you braying at, Jackass?”

“You believe in a blood-sucking dog,” Jimmy questioned.

“You believe the dead walk,” Daryl sneered.

“He’s got you there, Jimbo,” Julian shrugged his shoulders as he rested his hand on the hood of the truck. Jimmy reached for a gun, man that kid was really trying it today.

“Why don’t you come train tomorrow,” Shane offered. “If you’re serious, I’m a certified instructor.”

Andrea spoke up, “For now, he can come with us.”

“If it’s alright, I’d like to go with Jimmy.” Julian turned his attention to Rick. He didn’t feel like going in a car with Shane. The last man to go with him somewhere didn’t exactly seem to fare too well. Even if it meant going with the woman that he didn’t really know and someone who’d made fun of someone for believing in a Chupacabra.

Rick nodded his head and held out his hand to the younger man, “Alright. Thanks for helping us, kid.”

“Julian, sir.”

“Rick is just fine,” the sheriff smiled a little.

“Right, sorry. Not used to bein too friendly to the police. But, no problem, Rick. It feels right to help. Just hope we find her,” Julian nodded his head. The others didn’t notice him tense up as he turned his attention away from the barn and focused on the search plan.

~

Dove let out a heavy sigh as she turned her attention from the parting group to the house. She couldn’t keep Carol waiting much longer or she might send out another search party for her. As she ascended the steps, Glenn caught her attention. He seemed out of it. “Yoo-hoo. Earth to Glenn,” Dove waved a hand at him.

The man jumped slightly as he turned his head to look at his friend. The smile on his face fell slightly as he realized who was standing in front of him. “Hey, Dove. You not heading out today?”

“Nah, decided I might as well tend to my womanly duties,” she flicked her hair behind her shoulder in an exaggerated manner. “You alright, bud? You see kind of out of it since you got back yesterday.” Dove frowned as she leaned against the post.

“I’m fine. Just…a lot going on in my head, you know,” Glenn smiled sadly as he rested his hand on the guitar in his lap.

A sly look was in Dove’s eye as she spoke. “Well channel all of that emotion into a song and I’m sure you can woo yourself a farmer’s daughter in no time,” she wiggled her eyebrows at him.

The blush that shot up into Glenn’s cheek answered any questions she might have had. “What are you talking about?”

“Nothin! Just that I think a blind man all the way in Korea can see what I’m talking about! But that’s none of my business,” she shrugged her shoulders and took a step closer to him. “But if you do happen to want to talk about it, just let me know! I’m your friend and I’ll always be here to listen. Plus, no better person to go to for girly advice than a girl.” She chuckled as she ruffled Glenn’s hair.

Glenn smiled at the woman as she took a step back towards the door, “Thanks…”

Dove thought that Hershel’s house was nice and she made sure to tell them so. “Well thank you,” Patricia nodded her head politely.

Dove bit her lip as she looked around the hallway. “I just want to thank you,” she turned her attention back to the older blonde. Her expression seemed to be unreadable. Something about these people was off to her. They all seemed nice, but something wasn’t right about any of them. “For letting us stay here while we look for our niece. It’s not something you have to do especially now, you don’t know any of us from those walkers in the streets.”

Patricia held up a hand to stop her, “It’s not a problem. I just want to make sure that Rick and Hershel have made it very clear to you…”

“Once we find Sophia, once Carl is good to roll, we’re gone,” Dove nodded her head. “But still. Thank you,” she smiled as she turned on her heel to walk into the kitchen. “Just hope you don’t mind your mashed potatoes with a little crisp,” she called as she entered the room, “I suck at cooking!”

Carol shook her head at her younger sister as Lori laughed. “You can measure the ingredients,” Carol patted her arm.

“Listen, we all have skills. I was not made to be a house wife,” Dove raised her hands in surrender. “You, however, were a better housewife than any man ever deserved.” She winked at her sister.

Slightly uncomfortable, Lori changed the subject quickly. “You know you weren’t made to be a housewife?” She looked over her shoulder at the younger brunette as she began to peel a potato.

“Sure do. I was a few months away from trying it out, but let’s just say I had to cancel the subscription before the free trial ended,” Dove popped a piece of carrot into her mouth.

Carol clicked her tongue disapprovingly, “Still think you were better off. He seemed unstable.”

“Who? Owen,” Dove questioned her sister with a raised eyebrow. Carol just turned her attention to her. Dove rolled her eyes as she picked up a bigger carrot and started to peel it. “I mean he was a little…quirky.”

Lori let out a small groan at this, “Honey, we all know what quirky means. Quirky is code for ‘you’re unstable but I love you’.” The older brunette elbowed Dove lightly.

Carol let out a quiet snort of laughter at this, “You got that right. The one time when we went up to visit, we stayed in DC so Sophia and I got a hotel room next to them.”

Dove cut her off with a panicked laugh, “Alright listen, I get it! Owen was unstable and I have terrible taste in men, but it’s over now so…we don’t have to rehash that story! Alright.”

It was quiet in the kitchen for a moment before Lori whispered, “You’ll tell me later?”

“Oh, you bet,” Carol whispered back as Lori picked up a bucket to go collect more water.

“The hell you will,” Dove shouted as she picked up a carrot shaving and whipped it at her sister. “Be serious and cut up your god damn carrots,” Dove laughed and shook her head. Still, her thoughts went back to her life before everything went to shit. Actually, this was more like her life going to shit take two. Carol was right, she was way better off.

~

_“Bout time you strolled on up here, Dixon.” Daryl’s attention snapped to the side, back to the direction of the farm._

_“Hell do you want,” he snapped at the figure in front of him even though he knew she wasn’t real._

_“Should really be getting home,” the figure spoke as she twirled a small pendant between her fingers. She wasn’t really there, but her hazel eyes stared right into his soul just like if she were there, “getting dark out.”_

_“Shut up,” Daryl snapped as he started stomping back towards the farm. The figure was a few steps ahead of him as he shuffled forward. “Don’t give a shit anyway.”_

_“Like you said. Merle wasn’t there for you, so why should you listen to him,” the voice was further ahead now and he glanced around before he spotted it a few yards ahead between the trees. “So man the fuck up and use you head for once, asshole.” When Daryl blinked, she was gone._

~

Dove had decided to take a break from the kitchen, but she didn’t seem to be able to find anyone that she wanted to see. Glenn seemed even more miserable than before, the other men were back without much news, and Daryl still wasn’t back yet. The last part made her feel uneasy. It was getting dark out. A creek on the porch made her turn her attention. “Julian, right? You find anything before,” she stepped towards him.

The young man lowered his binoculars before he shook his head, “Not a thing. Sorry. Maybe your friend found something?”

“Who?”

“The redneck guy. Daryl?”

Dove scoffed, “I don’t think that you can really say that me and Daryl are friends but…”

Andrea’s panicked shouts about a walker cut through the relative silence. Dove felt her pulse quicken and Julian shook his head, “we don’t get many walkers out this far.” He stepped quickly off the porch to help out and shoved the binoculars into Dove’s hand as he went.

Something in her gut told her to look through and when she did, the binoculars fell from her hand as she took off at a run. “Wait,” she shouted as she ran faster than she thought she had in years. She didn’t even realize how quick she was running until she was about halfway across the field.

“Is that Daryl,” Glenn said.

“Holy hell, man. You look like shit,” Julian shouted.

“That’s the third time you’ve pointed that thing at my head,” Dove heard Daryl reply and she slowed down to a walk as a relieved laugh left her lips. “You gonna pull the trigger or what?”

It was silent for a few moments as Dove continued to approach the group. Glenn turned and noticed her but as Dove opened her mouth to call out, a gunshot rang out. What left her throat instead was a panicked scream as adrenaline took over and she took off again. She didn’t even realize what she’d done until her knees hit the ground. Rick was screaming back at Andrea and there was blood on her hands. “Jesus Christ, what the fuck,” Dove turned her head back in the direction of camp before she turned her head back to the sight in front of her. “Dumb fucking bitch, cmon don’t be dead please.” Dove muttered as Rick dropped to the ground next to her. “She shot him in the fucking head,” Dove’s voice shook as she reached a shaking hand out and turned Daryl’s head slightly.

“Good thing she’s a bad shot,” Rick mumbled as Daryl let out a pained groan. His eyes fluttered open for a moment and Dove felt relieved as she realized that he might look out of it, but he wasn’t one of them. He wasn’t dead yet. A hand on her shoulder pulled her to her feet as Glenn wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

Glenn gave her shoulder a squeeze as they watched Rick and Shane haul Daryl to his feet. “I was kidding,” he growled before he passed out.

Anger flared through Dove as Andrea approached them asking if he was dead.

“He’s wearing ears,” Dove heard Glenn’s panicked voice over the pounding of her blood in her ears. Her gaze fell to T-Dog as she fought to control her anger. _How could you be so stupid Rick told you not to do it,_ she raged internally. Even the sight of Sophia’s doll couldn’t calm her down. All she could think of was how, if Andrea had killed Daryl, they would never know where Sophia might be.

She reached a boiling point as they crossed over into camp. All of the bullshit thoughts and prayers about Sophia. All of the wanting to save people and act like she was big and tough. On top of losing Sophia, it was too much. “I’m so sorry,” she heard Andrea say again as Glenn finally released her arm.

“You’re sorry,” Dove rounded on the blonde woman. The few people who hadn’t rushed into the house froze, Carol put a hand over her mouth and shook her head. “You’re sorry that Sophia’s missing. You’re s _orry_ that you wanted to blow yourself up. You’re s _orry_ that you fucking almost killed the one person who might have the best shot at finding Sophia,” Dove’s voice was eerily calm as she stepped closer to the blonde.

“I thought he was a walker! I was just trying,” but Andrea didn’t get to say what she was trying to do. There was a shout and all of a sudden, both women were on the ground. Dove only managed to land two punches to the woman before she was wrenched away from her.

“Bitch,” Dove shouted as she was pulled back towards the house. She watched with narrowed eyes as Dale helped Andrea back to the RV.

“Holy shit,” Julian mumbled as he held the squirming woman tighter as he tried to pull her towards the porch. It was quite a task, but once it was accomplished, he sat her in a chair and hurried off into the house.

Dove’s attention finally turned from the RV as she winced. A quick look down showed her that a cold washcloth was being placed on her knuckle by Carol. “You shouldn’t have done that,” Carol mumbled.

“Yeah well, she shouldn’t have shot someone,” Dove closed her eyes and shook her head.

There were quiet footsteps as she heard Carol walk back into the house. She sat like that for a while before the door creaked open. She opened her hazel eyes and her shoulders slumped as Rick walked out. The sheriff knelt next to the chair and she felt her shoulders tense as she waited for him to reprimand her.

“I’m not here to yell at you,” Rick sighed as he ran a hand down his face, “I very well should be for the stunt you pulled. I don’t wanna have to hear about you tryin to fight like that in front of my son like that. I’m sure you understand,” Rick glanced over at her.

Dove nodded her head before she turned her gaze over to Rick. “Sorry…I just got,” she took a deep breath, “I got real angry like I haven’t in a real long time.”

Rick frowned and nodded his head, “I understand the last few days have been real hard on you and Carol, so you don’t need me to be hard on you too.” Dove sat up a little straighter and faced Rick fully. “But I just wanted you to know that Daryl’s just fine. He’s resting, we didn’t tell him that you punched Andrea.” She raised an eyebrow. “I think that’s a discussion that you should be able to have by yourself. But he did tell us where he found Sophia’s doll. Pointed it out on a map and everything so we have an even better grid to look for her,” Rick smiled and Dove felt the corner of her mouth quirk up into a smile.

“Thank you, Rick,” Dove whispered.

“Not a problem,” Rick patted her arm.

Dove moved the washcloth from her hand and flexed her knuckles, “Guess it’s best if I don’t sit next to Andrea at dinner, huh,” she joked and Rick chuckled quietly.

“I would advise you not to do that. Just in case,” he rose to his feet and placed a hand on her shoulder. “I want you to know that I’m gonna do my best to find her. I promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> spot the easter eggs 👀. I sincerely hope you're all enjoying the story so far and I really appreciate every comment I have gotten so far!


	16. Secrets

Dove forced herself to eat as she avoided eye contact with most of the people around her. All she wanted to do was talk to Glenn, but he had sat himself at the kids table. Instead, she found herself sitting in between Rick and Carol. Her stomach turned at the mention of the dead man who had helped save Carl’s life. As Carol rose from her seat, Dove cleared her throat and patted her mouth with her napkin before she rose to her feet. “I think I’m gonna turn in for the night. Thank you for allowing us into your home, Hershel,” she kept her eyes down as she nodded towards the head of the table.

She didn’t wait before she hurried out of the house and onto the porch. It was peaceful outside as she waited for Carol to come out and join her. Her mind was still racing from earlier. It made her nervous and, honestly, a little scared when she felt that amount of anger running through her. The cool night air hit her face and she focused on her breathing as the door opened behind her. She turned quickly to see T-Dog walk out of the front door with a hand raised. “Easy, crouching tiger,” he shut the door behind him as Dove snorted.

“You wanna try that again,” she raised an eyebrow at him as she reached into her pocket for a cigarette. 

“Let’s have a seat. You look like you need to talk,” he tilted his head down towards the other end of the porch. 

Dove rolled her eyes as she flicked her lighter. “I don’t…”

“You need to talk,” T-Dog cut her off before she could finish.

An exasperated sigh left her lips as she lit her cigarette and pushed off from the railing to follow the older man down to the rocking chair that Glenn had been sitting in previously. T-Dog motioned for her to take the chair but with a shake of her head, she boosted herself up onto the railing and took a seat. She took a drag and blew the smoke into the air as T-Dog spoke. “I think what you did today freaked some people out.”

“Listen, if you’re gonna really lecture me, even Rick didn’t try that,” Dove tapped some of the ash from her cigarette over the banister into the grass.

“This isn’t a lecture,” T-Dog shook his head and rubbed forehead before he continued. “But you freaking out on Andrea like that? What the hell was that about?”

“First of all, I think we’ve all wanted to punch Andrea in the face, okay.” Dove raised a hand in defense as she pulled her jacket tighter around herself. “I’m just the first female to get tired enough of her shit to do something about it,” she scoffed before she took another drag.

“We’ve also all wanted to shoot Dixon. In case I’m forgetting, you threatened him before too. I just wanna know what your deal is,” T-Dog stated simply and it made Dove pause. It definitely wasn’t anything like the lecture she’d been expecting and that threw her off. She stared at a spot on the siding above her friends head as she thought about what her friend had said. It wasn’t like she still didn’t feel the urge to slap the redneck silly when he decided to talk shit, but since Sophia went missing, it felt like life had went into a tailspin.

She waited quietly as a few others from their group filed out of the house before she answered. “I don’t know, okay? I think…I think I just thought about how he found a sign of Sophia and how if she’d killed him,” she took another deep drag of her cigarette and waited a few seconds before she exhaled. “We’d never find her because we’d never know where to go.” Her voice cracked as she looked down at her feet.

“Hey,” a voice broke the tension between the two friends as T-Dog turned quickly in his chair and Dove jumped slightly as she let out a small yelp. “Uh sorry, I thought you heard me come over,” Julian chuckled awkwardly as he rung his hands together. “I just um…I hope I’m not interrupting anything?” He looked between the two strangers.

“Nope, we’re good,” T-Dog smiled softly at Dove before she turned her attention back to the curly haired man.

“What do you need?” She asked quietly and received a startled look in response. “You came out here so you must need something,” she waved a hand at the younger man as she flashed him a small smile. 

Julian cleared his throat, “Everyone’s starting to clean up and um…I guess Patricia’s a little nervous about going in to get your friends plate that your sister brought him and I couldn’t find anyone else, so…” 

T-Dog looked away from the young man back to his friend. “She’ll do it. Seems like they’ve got some shit to talk about anyway.”

He placed a hand on her knee as Dove narrowed her eyes at him. “Great! Follow me, I’ll show you where he’s at.” Dove pursed her lips as she lowered her feet back to the porch. 

Before she followed Julian she leaned in and whispered in T’s ear. “I’m so going to get you back for this,” she smiled as she patted his shoulder before she walked back through the front door of the house after Julian.

She spotted Hershel as she entered and it was clear that, in spite of all of his hospitality, the hospitality didn’t exactly extend to the interior of his home. Dove raised a hand in greeting as Julian jumped to her defense. “She’s just gonna get the plates from Daryl’s room. She’s spending the night outside, aren’t you?” He turned to her.

Dove nodded her head quickly, “Absolutely, sir. I’m very grateful for you allowing us onto your land, I wouldn’t want to be the one that makes us overstay our welcome.”

Hershel’s blue eyes narrowed slightly as he appeared to be deep in thought. After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, he nodded. “Alright. Don’t take too long, though. We all need to be getting enough rest.” 

Julian nodded that he understood and touched Dove’s elbow before he pointed down a dimly lit hallway. “Right down there, miss. Third door on the left.” He smiled lightly before he quietly added. “Good luck.

* * *

It was dark in the room as Dove slowly pushed the door open. A few bites were taken out of the food, but it was untouched for the most part. She let out a deep sigh as she glanced from the tray of food to the man in the bed. His back was turned to her and the sheet was pulled up almost to his shoulders. She felt her breath catch in her throat as her eyes adjusted to the dark and she caught a glimpse of a scar on his back. The brunette placed a hand on the side table and she cringed as the fork clattered off of the plate and onto the tray.

“Hell you want,” a voice spoke almost instantly and Dove closed her eyes in frustration. She really didn’t want to have to talk to anyone else tonight. The young woman cursed herself for not just telling T-Dog to get off his ass and come in to get the damn tray himself. “Whatchu want?”

Dove’s eyes opened again as Daryl turned slowly onto his back . Dove swallowed hard before she answered. “I um…Julian sent me in to get the tray that Carol brought you.” She explained as she twiddled her thumbs for a moment. “Was something wrong with the food? You didn’t eat much,” she stated as she shifted her gaze back to the tray of food.

Daryl gritted his teeth as he tried to avoid pulling his stitches, “Nothin wrong with it. Just not real hungry.”

“Hershel gave you some of Merle’s pain meds, huh.” Dove shifted her gaze back to the man.

He nodded in the affirmative. “Heard you punched Andrea,” his voice was thick with sleep as he locked eyes with her for a moment. “Glenn told me.”

“Of course he did. Jesus, that guy gossips more than a woman does,” Dove rolled her eyes and drummed her fingers on the end table. “Yeah I did, she deserved it.”

Daryl grunted as he sat up slightly. “Shouldn’t have done that. She thought I was a walker, Rick told me. She was just tryin to protect the group.”

Dove sighed. “In case you haven’t noticed, it’s been pretty stressful lately so I wasn’t really thinking logically. Guess I’ve always just been very defensive of people that are kind of close to me.” Her hazel eyes drifted up to Daryl’s face.

There was a pause before Daryl shook his head. “We ain’t close.”

“You’re doing the most you can to help my sister and I look for Sophia. That makes us close,” she paused, “for now. Don’t get too used to it. Once we find her, we can go right back to you hating everyone in the group and me threatening you.” The corner of her mouth turned up into a small smile. It was quiet again. “She’s lucky I just punched her. I really laid into Ed the one time.”

“Yeah,” Daryl questioned with a grimace.

“Yep. He was trying to beat up Carol. She was pregnant with Sophia, I walked in, and he ended up with a concussion. I ended up with court ordered anger management to get out of assault charges,” she frowned. Dove cleared her throat and ran a hand through her hair. “Anyway, you should really get some sleep. You worked your ass off today; took an arrow and a bullet too. Let me help you,” she took a step closer to the bed and Daryl flinched backwards. Dove pulled her hand back.

“Don’t need your help,” Daryl grumbled as he turned slowly onto his side. Dove stood with her hands on her hips as she watched him struggle slightly. With a roll of her eyes, she stepped forward and reached a hand out to pull the blanket up further over his shoulders. Daryl’s shoulders tensed, only to relax after Dove pulled away. “Thanks.”

“No problem. You need more medication or anything? I can ask Hershel on my way out,” Dove stepped back as she turned to pick up the tray. 

“I’m good,” Daryl mumbled. Dove paused again, hands on either side of the tray. She lowered her hands to her sides before she leaned over the bed. The brunette froze; it didn’t seem like either of them were breathing for a moment.

Dove leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to Daryl’s cheek. “Thank you for everything,” she mumbled as she turned quickly and picked up the tray.

“I got stitches,” she heard Daryl say as she exited the room and closed the door behind her. Dove kept her eyes on the ground as she walked back to the kitchen. “Here you go,” she said as she placed the tray on the kitchen table.

“Hell was she rushing around for,” Julian said as he watched Dove quickly retreat out of the house. He shook his head as he brought the tray over to the sink for Patricia.

“Probably doesn’t want to cause any more trouble for her group after today. Poor thing,” Patricia mused as she continued to wash the dishes. “Now you should head off to bed. Ya’ll got a busy day tomorrow if you’re still gonna be looking for that little girl.”

The door slammed open again as Maggie burst into the house. “Right. Night, Pat.” Julian hurried up the stairs after Maggie, leaving Patricia alone in the kitchen once again. Julian knocked on Maggie’s door quietly before opening. “Mags, what’s wrong? You alright?”

“He knows,” Maggie whispered in a panicked voice.

“Who knows what ,” Julian lowered his voice.

“Glenn. He saw the barn,” Maggie shook her head. 

“Son of a bitch,” Julian hissed. And everything had just seemed to calm down between the two groups.

* * *

The next morning felt like groundhog day. Wake up, wash the laundry, hang the laundry, and wait around. Dove hummed to herself as she hung one of her shirts up to dry. “You seem better this morning,” Carol smiled. “Noticed you came into the tent late. Didn’t see you around camp either.”

Dove shrugged her shoulders, “Julian asked me to help him out. They needed help cleaning things around the house so. Figured it was the least I could do for almost causing a street fight ‘round here.” She chuckled as her gaze flickered to the house. 

Carol followed her sister’s gaze, a sly look on her face. “Cleaning things?”

“Shut up,” Dove hissed through gritted teeth.

“How you feeling,” Carol called out as Daryl limped his way past them to his tent.

“Just peachy,” he grumbled but, much to the surprise of the two sisters, he smiled just a little before he was on his way again.

There was silence for a few seconds before Carol spoke again. “He smiled. You think that shot to the head gave him brain damage,” Carol asked. Dove let out a snort of laughter and shook her head.

She shoved a wet shirt into her older sister’s hands. “Don’t be such a brat.”

“Hey guys,” Glenn hurried over in their direction with a basket of fruit. Dove nodded in greeting as she kept hanging her clothes. “I brought you guys some fruit. I mean Maggie brought it to me but now I’m handing it out to everyone so….”

“I suspect this is you apologizing for telling Daryl my business yesterday,” Dove raised an eyebrow at Glenn. Carol pursed her lips as she kept at her chores. “That was a pretty shitty thing you did, Glenn. You should’ve let me tell him about it when I got a chance instead of making me sound like some sort of…some sort of…help me out here, Care.”

Carol spoke up from further down the line. “Heathen? Hooligan?”

Dove nodded. “Hooligan. I like that one. You should’ve let me tell him about it instead of making me sound like some sort of hooligan runnin around here raisin all types of hell.” 

Glenn let out a heavy sigh, “Sorry! It just.”

“Slipped out,” Dove and Carol stated in unison with the young man. “Listen, Glenn. You’re like my best friend so I gotta tell you, you can’t keep secrets for shit.” Glenn’s expression softened slightly at this. “So I forgive you as long as there’s a nice juicy peach in there for me.”

Glenn nodded his head. “Right.” He began to rummage through the basket of fruit quickly as Andrea walked past them. “You gonna apologize,” he asked quietly as he handed Dove a peach

“And say what? Sorry I didn’t get to throw one more punch? Third times the charm?” Dove examined the peach as she spoke.

Carol accepted her own with a thanks. “Too soon, I think. But she’ll do it eventually.”

Dove bit into her peach and rolled her eyes, “Cool. Talk like I’m not here. Now go on, get. Before your girlfriend gets jealous that you’re giving all the girls her fruit.” She swatted playfully at the brim of Glenn’s hat. 

Carol reached into the basket as Glenn began to make his way across camp again. Dove raised an eyebrow and Carol shrugged as she set the extra piece of fruit on the table behind them. “For Daryl,” she smirked slightly.

Dove rolled her eyes as she took another bite of her apple before returning to work. “Yeah, whatever.”

Julian sat in the rocking chair on the porch as he tried to relax. It seemed like every time he was able to stop his mind racing, his attention flickered back towards the barn. Neither of them had told anyone else about the barn or how someone in the new group had figured it out and it was starting to gnaw at his nerves. No matter what happened, it probably wouldn’t be good. If Glenn could just keep his mouth shut, maybe they’d be find. Best case scenario, they find Sophia and they leave without an incident. Worst case scenario, they all die.

A hand on his shoulder nearly made him jump out of his skin. Beth looked just as startled as he turned to face her. “Jeez, sorry! I thought you heard me ! I said your name and everything,” Beth smiled. “You alright? You and Maggie both seem kind of out of it this morning.”

Julian ran a hand through his hair and let out a sigh. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just…you think the barn’s gonna hold forever?” He made sure that his voice was quiet. He was almost sure that it was hard for Beth to make out what he was saying.

“I don’t see why not. No one’s gotten out yet,” Beth shrugged her thin shoulders. “‘Sides, it only has to hold until they find a cure or somethin. Daddy said it probably shouldn’t last too long now.”

“How does he know that,” Julian furrowed his brow. He trusted Hershel and guilt immediately washed over him for mentioning any doubt in the old man. He’d taken him in after everything went down. The only reason he’d come here is because of his sister but she didn’t even make it there.

Beth wrinkled her nose in concentration. “Well…how do you know that Mara’s still out there?” 

Julian leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “I guess…I can’t explain it. Just a feeling, I guess.”

“I think it’s the same for my daddy then. Just a feeling about it,” Beth stared out at the barn for a moment before she looked down at her shoes. “I’m sorry. I know you miss her. This whole thing sucks.” Julian let out a quiet laugh. Beth was such a good kid that even hearing her say the word ‘suck’ just didn’t sound right.

“That it does, Beth. But it’s all gonna be okay,” He turned his head to look back at the blonde girl before he forced a smile. 

An excited smile crossed Beth’s face, “Oh! I almost forgot what I came to tell you! Daddy said I can do gun training today! He was real angry about it at first, but he said I could.” She looked so proud of herself that Julian couldn’t help but smile back, genuinely this time.

“Well now! That’s great, Bethy. Pretty soon, you’ll be like Rambo, huh,” he joked and Beth let out a little laugh. Julian decided that he was going to gun training. He hadn’t gone hunting in a few years and it couldn’t really hurt.

* * *

Dove knocked her knuckles on the tree next to the tent. “Did you really just do that,” Daryl’s voice rung out from inside the tent.

“I’m gonna take that question as a greeting and yes I did. Figured it was the polite thing to do,” Dove answered as she stepped into view. A hand was held behind her back as she wiped her other hand on the front of the black tank top she wore.

“What,” Daryl raised an eyebrow at her and stifled a laugh quickly as she moved her hand out from behind her back.

“Still feelin peachy,” Dove raised an eyebrow at him as he leaned forward and swiped the fruit from her. 

Daryl examined the fruit for a moment. “The hell’d you get this from?”

“Glenn gave it to me. Well, Maggie gave it to Glenn who gave one to me and Carol who took one for you and it’s just not even worth explaining,” Dove waved a hand in the air.

“Nervous talker,” Daryl mumbled as he bit into the peach.

Dove stared with pursed lips as the man seemed to enjoy the fruit. “Yeah, real funny. Glad to see you’re feeling better,” she smiled a little as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. 

Daryl shrugged his shoulders. “Good as I can be after taking an arrow and a bullet.” He wiped his mouth.

“Well, I just wanted to let you know. Shane’s holding up on his deal and givin everyone gun training today. “ She quirked an eyebrow. “Not that you need it, but I just figured you might need to watch out. If I can convince Carol to do it, she might be a force to be reckoned with.”

Daryl chuckled quietly, “I’ll believe it when I see it. If it still existed, I’d say take a picture for me.”

Dove laughed. “I’ll see what I can do for you,” she extended her arms to either side as she turned to head out.

* * *

Dove furrowed her brow as she focused on the target and pulled the trigger. She’d been at it for a half hour and she let out an excited yell before she turned her head. “Did you see that? I hit that!” She called back at Carol.

Carol nodded quickly and gave her a thumbs up. Dove peeked down the line, only to roll her eyes at the younger boy from Hershel’s camp. She couldn’t blame T-Dog for telling him off about the way he was holding his gun either. She rolled her hazel eyes as she heard Andrea say something about hitting her target. “Good job,” the person next to her spoke.

Dove turned her head as she watched Julian shoot yet another bottle. “Remind me again why you’re doing gun training with us? You don’t seem to need it.”

Julian shrugged his shoulders as he lowered his gun slightly. “I just needed a refresher, really. I used to hunt with my dad when we lived up north. Figured it couldn’t hurt.”

Dove shrugged her shoulders and raised her gun again, “Couldn’t hurt anyone unless you want it too I guess.” She pulled the trigger again and hit her target. 

Julian heard Carl laughing and he looked over in that direction, “Nice shooting, buddy! I don’t think I could hit that from that far when I was your age.”

Rick laughed as he rustled his son’s hair.

Rick motioned for Carol to step forward and Dove stepped back to allow her sister to take her spot. Dove flashed her a big smile and a thumbs up as Carol cautiously took the gun from Rick’s hand. “I might not be very good at this,” Carol explained as she looked from the gun to the targets.

Dove smiled at the curly-haired man, “Ever think of being a motivational speaker,” she joked as she turned back to the targets. 

Julian chuckled, “Just bein nice is all. You guys got a good group. That kids been through enough shit that he doesn’t need someone tellin him he can’t do something.”

Dove shrugged her shoulders. “Guess you’re right. Telling kids they can’t do something usually leads to them doing it.”

* * *

Something was wrong with Lori, that was pretty clear from the second they got back to camp. She was distant, she was sick, and Dove was worried. “You think she’s alright,” Dove frowned as she looked over towards Lori and Dale.

Carol shrugged her shoulders, “Not sure. She’s definitely been a little off the past few days; not that any of us have really been ourselves since Sophia went missing.” Carol picked at her food and Dove responded with a quiet grunt. “How are you doing with everything? Everyone keeps askin me, but I don’t see a lot of them checkin on you.” Carol observed with concern.

Dove cleared her throat and stood as she wiped her hands on the front of her pants. “I’m fine,” she mumbled as she stood to collect her laundry. It wasn’t the healthy thing to do, she knew that. Still, she felt terrible that anything happened in the first place. People didn’t need to worry about her, she could handle herself. Most things in life, she felt like she could expect now.

One thing she didn’t expect was the wrath of Maggie Greene when she and Glenn returned from their run. Dove liked Lori. Lori didn’t pry or ask too many questions, she just let people talk to her. Dove wasn’t ready to talk, so she tried to best to keep herself occupied with folding laundry when they returned. She raised a hand in greeting and almost immediately lowered it when Maggie came stomping over. 

Hazel eyes locked on Glenn as he stood back, a look of shock on his face as he tried to stop the young woman. “We got your stuff,” Maggie shouted as she kept walking towards them in spite of Glenn’s attempts to stop her. Dove raised her eyebrows as she noticed Lori start to look around, suddenly very on edge. 

“Come on in here,” Lori motioned for the two to follow her and Dove’s grip on the shirt she was folding tightened.

“Why? Nothing to hide, we got your special delivery right here,” Maggie shouted. “We got your lotion, got your conditioner, your soap opera digest.” Maggie continued to yell as she threw things on the ground. Dove just wanted to ground to open up and swallow her. “Next time you want something, get it your damn self.”

Dove’s eyes widened as Maggie bent down and scooped something up before she shoved it in Lori’s hands. “Here’s your damn abortion pills.” Suddenly, it made sense, How off Lori seemed. How she suddenly got sick at the smell of the cooking meat earlier. Lori was pregnant. Dove’s jaw dropped as she exchanged a worried look with Glenn before he ran off after Maggie.

It was silent for a few moments between the two women before Dove spoke up. “Lori. I….”

Lori shook her head and walked off into her tent with tears in her eyes. Dove waited a moment before she sighed, threw the shirt she was holding back in the pile, and went after the other woman. “Rick doesn’t know,” Lori ran a hand through her hair as Dove entered the tent after her. “I couldn’t tell him. Not yet. I don’t think I can do this. What kind of life is a baby gonna have in this world? “

Dove looked down at her boots before she took a few steps into the tent and knelt in front of Lori. She took a moment before she reached out and placed a hand on Lori’s knee. “Hey, it’s alright. I’m not gonna tell anyone.” She shook her head. “It’s your business to tell him.” Her gaze fell to the pills set on the table near Lori’s shaking hand. “I just wanted to tell you that…if you wanna talk about it, you know. I’m actually good at keeping secrets. It was kind of a big part of my job before.” She gave Lori’s arm a squeeze and Lori had a shaky smile on her face as she spoke again.

“Tell me the truth, do you think I’m terrible for even thinking about this?” Lori’s voice cracked,

Dove shook her head slowly, “No. I mean I don’t know if I’d ever be able to do it, but I understand where you’re coming from. I do. I won’t be the one to try to talk you out of or into doing anything. Just know that whatever you choose to do, you can talk to me. Carol too, if you want to. I’ll leave that part up to you.” The brunette froze for a moment, just a little bit shocked as Lori embraced her.

“Thank you. I feel so bad about Glenn and Maggie too,” she sniffled.

“Hey,” Dove pulled back and placed a hand on Lori’s shoulder. “You can talk to Glenn about that but I don’t see him as much of a grudge holder. Me, however, I’d probably lay you out like I did with Andrea.” Lori rolled her eyes at the poor excuse of a joke as Dove stood. “But I really think you should talk to Glenn. For someone young, he actually gives really good advice.” She shrugged her shoulders before she exited the tent. 

Dove Sawyer did not envy Lori Grimes in the slightest bit in that moment. She would never want to be in the position that Lori was in at that moment, and maybe that was why she held back the question that gnawed at the back of her mind. Who exactly was that baby’s father.


	17. Pretty Much Dead Already

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please enjoy a nice chapter because honey u got a big storm comin :))))

There was an unease in the air as they all gathered around the fire for breakfast. It felt like something big was about to happen, she just didn’t know what it was yet. Dove perched herself on top of a bucket and was beginning to shovel eggs into her mouth as Glenn cleared his throat. She turned; an eyebrow raised as she looked at her friend.

“So, guys,” Glenn trailed off for a moment. “There’s walkers in the barn.” Dove’s heart sank to her stomach as she dropped her fork back to her plate. A quick glance around the fire showed everyone was about as shocked as she was. 

“Well, c’mon then. Show us,” Shane’s harsh voice broke the silence. Dove didn’t want to move from the spot she was in, but it didn’t seem like she had much of a choice. T-Dog stood up from next to her and offered her his hand. She rolled her eyes as she accepted the help to stand. 

“I don’t know why we all have to go look,” Dove whispered to Carol as she tugged at the hem of her shirt. “Why would Glenn make that shit up?”

Carol shook her head, “I don’t know.” Carol grabbed her sister’s hand and gave it a squeeze.

Glenn was telling the truth, as expected and Shane was not happy about it in the slightest. “This is Hershel’s land! We’re guests here,” Rick began to argue as Glenn tried to calm the two men down. 

“We can’t just sweep this under the rug,” Andrea piped up. 

“It ain’t right. Not remotely,” Shane agreed.

Dove shook her head as she put a comforting arm around Carol. “No one’s saying it’s right, Shane. Not a soul is but think about it. If Hershel’s keeping them in the barn, there has to be a reason behind it.”

Shane shook his head as he began to pace, “Don’t really care what the reason is. We’ve either got to make things right or we’ve just got to go. Now we have been talking about Fort Benning for a long time.” 

A mix of anger and panic surged through Dove. Shane was a selfish, arrogant bastard, and now he wanted to leave without Sophia. 

“We can’t leave,” Rick spoke up. But that still wasn’t good enough for Shane.

“Sophia’s still out there,” Carol stepped forward, out of Dove’s grasp. “I’m not leaving without her.” Dove chewed nervously on her thumbnail as Daryl walked up beside her.

“I think it’s time that we all just start to consider the other possibility,” Shane tried to keep his voice steady.

Dove dropped her hands to her sides and chewed on the inside of her cheek before she couldn’t hold it in anymore. “What other possibility? The possibility that you didn’t give two shits about finding Sophia in the first place? Because I’ve already considered that possibility,” she hissed at the deputy.

Shane didn’t seem phased at all, though. “Now you listen, bird. We’ve been looking for her since day one, so don’t come at me with that.”

Dove huffed, “Daryl’s been looking is what I think you mean. Rick’s been looking, but you never seemed too dead set on it from the start. So sorry if I’m not fully buying what you’re selling.” Carol shot Dove a panicked glance; it was enough to make the younger woman back down as Rick stepped up.

“We’re not leaving Sophia behind,” Rick stated.

Daryl spoke up next as he began to pace, “I’m close to finding this girl! I just found her damn doll two days ago.” 

Shane let out a short laugh and Dove thought about throwing a shovel at his head. “You found her doll, Daryl. That’s what you did. You found a doll.”

“He found the doll; Sophia has to be close by. Right,” Dove was beginning to feel like she was grasping at straws and she didn’t like that feeling. Not one bit. She knew there was a possibility that Sophia was dead, she’d just never thought on it too much. She was an educated woman, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t be superstitious. Dove felt like if she thought about Sophia being dead too much, it might be something that came into existence. 

“You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, Shane,” Daryl shouted as he stepped forward. Dove and Carol were right behind him as he swung an arm at Shane. Dove placed a hand on Daryl’s arm for a moment as he lowered his arm. A quick glance between them said enough, they were all growing tired and wary of Shane.

“I’m just saying what needs to be said. You get a good lead, it’s in the first 48 hours,” Shane explained. 

“Shane, stop,” Rick pleaded as Carol began to tear up. 

Dove turned her attention to her sister. “Don’t listen to him, Carol. Look at me, we’re gonna find her,” Dove trailed off as Shane began to shout once again.

“Let me tell you something else, man. If she was alive out there and saw you coming, all methed out with your buck knife and your geek ears around your neck? She would run in the other direction,” Shane shouted.

Carol brought both of her hands up to her mouth as Daryl took a real swing at Shane. Rick tried his best to block the two men from each other and Dove could feel the adrenaline pumping in her veins as she stepped forward. She reached out her hand and caught Daryl’s arm in mid-swing. “Stop it,” Dove shouted over the chaos at Shane. Daryl was stronger than he looked, even recovering from an injury and he broke out of her grasp, like a bloodhound that had caught a scent and continued to go after Shane. 

Dove shoved herself in between Rick and Daryl. “Leave it,” she hissed at the redneck as she gave him a sharp shove backwards. Daryl’s blue eyes went wide as he stumbled back a step towards Carol. “Shane’s trying to make you look like a piece of shit and you’re better than that,” she whispered as Rick managed to get Shane to retreat. 

“She’s right,” Carol nodded in quiet agreement. 

Shane was like a rampaging lunatic and for the first time since everything started, Dove felt true fear. “Just let me talk to Hershel,” Rick tried to reason with his friend. “I have to talk to him about it no matter what. We stay, we clear the barn, but I have to talk him into it! This is his land.” 

Dale stepped up, a hand raised in the air. “Hershel sees though things in there as people.” Dove ran a hand through her hair as she tried to process the fact that Hershel thought the people in his barn were still alive. “Sick people. His wife, his stepson.”

“You knew,” the betrayal was obvious in Rick’s voice.

“Yesterday I talked to Hershel,” Dale explained calmly. 

“And you waited the night,” Shane rounded on the old man.

Dove let out a heavy sigh as she turned and faced towards the fields behind her. She just felt sick about everything. She tried to focus on the fact that there were walkers on the barn, but she could only think of two things. One, Shane thought Sophia was dead. And two, Shane was becoming less and less stable by the day. 

Her thoughts were cut off as loud growls began to leave the barn. A shiver ran down her spine as she grabbed Carol’s arm and began backing up. “How many of those fucking things are in there,” she whispered to Carol.

Carol shook her head quickly, “Too many…”

~

Dove didn’t know what to do with herself when she got back to camp. Her nerves were shot, and she felt like she just wanted to run. She couldn’t even say where she wanted to run too, but she didn’t want to be here. The walkers in the barn pushed her over the edge.

“Hey,” a voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She twitched nervously before she turned her attention to the man who spoke. 

“Can I help you,” she responded coolly.

“I just…I wanted to talk to someone from your group,” Julian lowered his voice as he knelt next to her. “I know that you guys are supposed to leave after you find your niece.”

“We might not,” Dove responded quickly as she glanced quickly towards the barn.

“I wanna come with you guys when you leave,” Julian interrupted. Dove’s eyebrows shot up.

“Why would you wanna do that? Isn’t your family here,” Dove inquired.

Julian shook his head. “No, I…” He sighed heavily and ran a hand down his face. “My sister and I were trying to get to Atlanta when everything went down. Barely made it any further than that traffic jam you guys said you got stuck in from how backed up it was. Everything went to shit, people panicked. We got separated. I ran here because my parents were friends with Hershel. It’s stupid, but it’s the first place I thought of that wouldn’t lead me right into a herd of panicking people.”

Dove stared at the younger man; hazel eyes scanned him as she tried to think of anything to say. “Sorry about your sister.”

“That’s why I wanna go with you guys. I think she’s still out there,” Julian explained, and Dove opened her mouth to reply before she squinted into the distance. People were walking towards the stables and she didn’t have to look hard to see that her sister was one of them.

“Like I said,” Dove spoke again as she rose to her feet. “Sorry about your sister, but I’m not in charge here. Talk to Rick,” she called over her shoulder as she took off at a slow jog towards her sister.

Dove picked up the pace as she didn’t hear any noise coming from the stable and when she got close enough, she realized what was happening. Carol had followed Daryl to try and stop him. He was going to get himself killed. “We don’t know if we’re gonna find her, Daryl. I don’t,” Carol spoke, and Dove felt like a dagger entered her heart. 

“What,” Daryl spoke quietly as Dove peeked around the corner. She didn’t want to be noticed right now. 

“Can’t lose you too,” Carol said. Dove took a deep breath and leaned her head against the warm wood of the stable. Carol cared too much about other people for her own good; hell, maybe they both did. Dove jumped at the sudden noise of things being thrown inside. 

“Just leave me be,” Daryl’s tone was harsher now and Dove flinched. “Stupid bitch,” Daryl growled as he walked out of the stable. He didn’t even see Dove as he passed her. She watched for a moment as he stomped off towards the trees before she turned and looked into the stable. 

Carol stood there with tears streaming down her face, but the second she saw Dove, she began to wipe them away quickly. “What are you doing here,” Carol’s voice cracked. 

Dove stepped further into the barn until she was able to embrace her sister. Carol shuddered as she tried to hold back a sob. “Carol, talk to me.” Dove stroked Carol’s back as she tried to soothe her. 

“I tried to stop him from going to look for Sophia. He already got so hurt looking for her. He’s a good person, Dove. We can’t lose him too,” Carol wiped her eyes again. “Not after Jacqui. Not after Sophia.” Dove felt another wave of sadness wash over her at the thought of Jacqui. She didn’t realize that she missed the older woman, she tried not to think about it too much. Dove didn’t want to fall down a slippery slope that would take her a long time to crawl out of.

Dove squeezed her sister’s shoulder. “Listen, it’s not gonna happen.” She shook her head.

Carol sniffled and pulled away from her sister. “You saw what Shane did today. What do you think would’ve happened if the two of them actually fought? Shane’s strong, we all saw him put him in that chokehold back at camp.” Dove wrinkled her nose. “What if…” Carol trailed off.

Dove wiped her hands on the front of her shirt before she tilted her head back and looked up at the ceiling of the stables. “I’m gonna go find him,” Dove decided. 

Carol spoke up, “Wait…”

“Listen, he still needs to get shit for calling you a dumb bitch,” she planted her feet on the ground and crossed her arms in front of her chest. Carol just stared at her younger sister before the brunette disappeared out of the stables.

Dove squinted against the sun as she walked towards the direction that she had last seen Daryl in. She didn’t expect what she saw. Dove stayed quiet as she reached down to untie her shoelaces. The brunette peeled her socks off her feet before she quietly stepped forward. Dove sighed as she lowered herself to sit on the dock next to the redneck. 

“What do you want,” Daryl’s voice was quiet. She didn’t expect that either.

“Well, I came out here to tell you that I really don’t appreciate you calling my sister a stupid bitch, but it’s really peaceful out here. Don’t know if I wanna ruin it,” she shrugged her shoulders as she moved her feet back and forth in the water.

It was quiet for a few seconds before Daryl spoke again. “She said that she doesn’t know if we’re gonna find Sophia. Got real mad I guess.”

“Well, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t do it again. She got enough of that shit from Ed, ya know.” Dove shook her head, “The truth is, we don’t know if we’re gonna find Sophia alive or dead. We’re gonna find her, just a matter of when. It’s just Shane getting into her head because she’s stressed out and he got her all frazzled.”

Daryl grunted in response as Dove turned to face him. “She means well. Carol does, I mean. She just…worries about you I guess.”

Daryl huffed as he kicked at the water, “Don’t need anyone worryin about me.”

“Well, that’s too bad. Because once Carol decides to worry about something, she basically makes it her job.” Dove nodded her head. “I mean if mothering was an Olympic sport, she would have several gold medals,” Dove chuckled and she noticed the corner of Daryl’s lip twitch up in a light smile.

It was gone before she could say anything, but he turned to look at her. “I’m sorry I haven’t found her yet.”

Dove furrowed her brow as she turned slightly. She pulled one of her feet out of the water and pulled her knee up to her chest as she faced the older man. “Hey,” she hesitantly reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder. Daryl flinched slightly but didn’t make a move to jerk away. “I meant what I said before. You’re better than Shane. Better than half of the people that I knew before this whole thing went down, actually.”

Daryl raised an eyebrow. “Don’t need you lyin to me to make your case, Dove.”

“Shane’s losing his shit out here, man. And if he loses it and kills someone? If he kills you after all the shit we’ve been through over the past few weeks?” Dove clenched her teeth and shook her head. 

Daryl scoffed and spoke again as he turned away from her, “Nothing’s gonna happen. I…” He stopped mid-sentence and pulled both of his feet out of the water. 

“Hey, what?” Dove frowned as Daryl grabbed her lightly by the arm and pulled her to her feet. “Where are we going,” Dove tried her best to keep up with him before he came to a stop. He released her arm and she followed his gaze towards the edge of the pond. Her jaw dropped.

“Look. Wait right here,” he said as he began to pull his socks and shoes back on.

“Where are _you_ going?” Dove questioned, not looking away from the bush. 

“Goin to get your sister. I’ll be right back,” then Daryl was gone.

Dove had always been one to find comfort in nature, but she never felt more at peace than she did as she stood there and waited for them to return. If the story that Daryl had told them had any truth to it, then that bush of Cherokee roses had definitely bloomed for Sophia.


	18. Dear God

_Dear God, sorry to disturb you but_   
_I feel that I should be heard loud and clear_   
_We all need a big reduction in amount of tears_   
_And all the people that you made in your image_   
_See them fighting in the street_   
_'Cause they can't make opinions meet about God_   
_I can't believe in you_

_-Dear God by XTC_

* * *

Dove left the area by the little pond feeling more at peace that she had in a while. It seemed like seeing the big bush of Cherokee Roses had lightened Carol's spirits a little bit too as they walked along together. "He really thinks we're gonna find her," Carol whispered as she watched Daryl's back retreating towards the camp ahead of them.

"I guess so. He apologized and everything," Dove shook her head in amazement. "We sure that he didn't get brain damage from that gunshot? He's been acting all nice and shit today. It's weird."

Carol rolled her eyes, "Don't jinx it." Dove let out a short laugh.

"What the hell are they still doin here," Daryl said quietly and drew the attention of the two women forward again. Dove squinted as she saw Andrea walking towards the house. Did they find her?

"Rick's with Hershel, we were supposed to leave a few hours ago," Dove heard Andrea say as they picked up the pace to keep up with Daryl.

"Yeah you were," Daryl called as he announced their arrival. "What the hell you still doin here?"

Carol stepped up beside the redneck as Dove tried to keep her distance from the blonde woman. "Rick told us he was going out," she directed her question towards Andrea.

"Damn it, isn't anyone taking this seriously? We got us a damn trail," Daryl snapped.

"If no one else is taking this seriously, then we'll just go since we're apparently the only ones taking this seriously," Dove jumped in with a sideways glance towards Andrea.

"No, you're not," Carol spoke up again and any retort that her younger sister had was lost as Daryl cut in.

"Here we go," he spoke as he walked past the two women. Everyone's attention was drawn to the figure approaching. It was Shane, Dove noticed. Her eyes quickly locked onto the bag filled with guns. Her heart leapt into her throat as she reached out for her sister. Carol gripped her sister's hand in hers as Shane handed a gun to Daryl.

Dove didn't miss the worried and confused look on Daryl's face as he walked towards them with the others.

"Where's Dale," Andrea inquired.

"Thought we couldn't carry," T-Dog asked.

"He's on his way, and we can and we have to," Shane answered as he turned and held a handgun out to Dove. "C'mon. You with us?"

Dove's eyes flickered quickly from the gun to her sister and then quickly over Shane's shoulder. Her hazel eyes locked with Daryl's blue ones as he seemed to await her response. Dove stood up a little straighter, her grip on Carol's hand tightened. "You know I'm with the group no matter what. But not with this. I won't be a part of it." Shane scoffed and turned his attention to Glenn.

"What about you man, gonna protect yours?" Dove was surprised to see Glenn take the rifle. "Can you shoot?" Shane questioned Maggie.

"Can you stop," Maggie snapped.

The door to the house swung open as Julian stepped onto the porch. "What the hell is going on out here," his brown eyes were wide in confusion as he took in the sight before him. Why the hell did they have all those guns.

"What about you, bud? You seemed ready to defend your home when you wanted gun training. You gonna man up," Shane held a gun out to him.

Julian's eyes narrowed slightly as he descended the steps to stand next to the oldest Greene sister. "You might wanna rethink the decision you're making here," Julian shook his head.

"You do this and my dad will make you leave tonight," Maggie attempted to reason with him.

"What is this," Lori approached finally from around the porch.

Dove's eyes shot to the older brunette. If there was a way to silently communicate to Lori that she needed to try and talk him down, she would be doing it right now. "Hershel's just gotta understand. We're not going anywhere. Okay? He's gonna have to. Now we need to find Sophia. Am I right?"

Dove snarled, "Don't even try to make this about her! That's not what this is about."

Lori took that chance to step in. "Rick said no guns! This is not your decision, this is not your call." Dove closed her eyes as she tried to take a deep breath. Her chest felt tight again, but it seemed like today wouldn't stop as a voice spoke from behind them.

"Oh shit," T-Dog shouted.

Dove turned quickly, her hazel eyes opened as she saw Rick coming out of the woods with Hershel and two walkers. Everyone was off.

"See what they're holding onto," Shane shouted as Dove let go of Carol's hand and ran faster.

"I see who I'm holding onto," Hershel retorted.

"Shane, just let us do this. Then we can talk," Rick pleaded as Dove came to a stop next to T-Dog.

"These things ain't sick! They're not people," Shane began to rant. "They're dead! Ain't gonna feel nothin for them 'cause all they do, they kill!" Shane paced back and forth like a madman and Dove didn't even realize she was digging her nails into her friend's arm in a panic until he gently pulled her hand away.

"Go back with Carol," T-Dog gave her shoulder a gentle shove backwards and Dove could only stumble back a few steps before an arm wrapped around her shoulder. Dove bit down on the inside of her lip as she began to shake in her sister's arms.

"They're the things that killed Amy! They killed Otis! They're gonna kill all of us," Shane screamed. "Hey Hershel, let me ask you something. Could a living, breathing person, could they walk away from this?" Shane rambled on before he pulled out his gun and fired three shots into the female walker that Hershel had on a rope.

Carol jumped at the sudden shock of the loud noise and Dove's hand flew up to cover her mouth. "Stop it," Rick shouted.

"That's three rounds in the chest," Shane continued to scream. "Can someone who's alive take that? Why is it still coming?" Shane took more shots. He was just fucking with them now and Dove wanted to scream as he finally stepped forward and took the headshot. "Enough! Risking our lives for a little girl who's gone," Shane yelled as he approached the barn door.

Daryl glanced quickly over his shoulder at this. Carol whimpered as Dove wrapped her arms around her sister and began to stroke her hair with her own shaking hands. Dove wanted to take that gun and shoot Shane for everything he was putting them all through. It was only fear that kept her rooted to the spot.

"Enough living next to a barn full of things that want to kill us! Enough. Rick, it ain't like it was before. Now if y'all want to live, if you want to survive, you got to fight for it," Shane continued his rampage. On the other side of the group, Julian had his hands planted firmly in his curly hair. It was only when Rick started to shout for Hershel to take the snare pole that he stepped forward.

Everyone was beginning to scream. His focus shifted from the snare pole with the walker to Beth. Julian grabbed her shoulder firmly, "Listen to me, you try not to look okay?" His voice was almost pleading, "I know you haven't been out there and haven't seen how bad it is but…." He trailed off as the noises from the barn grew louder; the walkers started to file out and Julian wanted to throw up as he saw some familiar faces in the mix. Out of instinct, he wrapped a protective arm around the younger girl as she began to weep at the sight of her family.

Every gunshot made Dove's stomach turn and Carol jumped. Dove's eyes stayed focused on a spot above the doorway to the barn as she tried to keep herself from panicking too much. Then, just as suddenly as it had started, everything stopped. Jimmy was at Beth's side and Julian pulled away, his hands going right back to his hair as he tried to keep the tears that he felt sting his eyes from falling.

Dove's breath caught in her throat as Daryl turned around to face them. She didn't know what to think about anything right now, if anything she wanted an excuse to go run away from the barn now more than ever. She finally released her grip on Carol's arm as she took careful steps forward. In the shocked silence, she heard it. Something else was moving in the barn. She felt her pulse quicken as T-Dog took a few steps back to meet her. "Don't," his voice was barely above a whisper.

It felt like the world started to move in slow motion as a little shoe emerged from the barn, followed by thin legs. Dove heard Daryl's voice from her left side utter a quiet, "No," before she heard Carol.

"Sophia," Carol shouted as she ran forward and that seemed to snap Dove out of her own trance as she made a move to run forward.

T-Dog was a lot stronger than her, but she tried to fight him. "Let me go," Dove beat her fists against her friend's chest as he held her in place. She could see Carol out of the corner of her eye with Daryl, both of them trying to reach the little girl but both of them being stopped. "Let me go," Dove hissed before T-Dog gave her a shake.

"Don't look," his voice shook.

_Don't look._

It was those words that seemed to snap her back to reality as she finally registered what was happening. Sophia's eyes were cloudy, her shirt was torn, and the left side of her neck was gone. Sophia was gone. The scream that Dove let out almost didn't sound human as she watched her niece continue to shuffle forward. The sudden noise in the silence made the little girl's dead gaze focus on the brunette woman. Carol continued to sob and Dove could barely see through the tears in her eyes. What she did see, was Sophia's head turn slightly in her direction. Dove felt like she couldn't breathe for a moment and then…

It was over.

A gunshot rang out and Sophia dropped to the ground. Carol began to sob hysterically as Dove felt herself go numb. She clung to T-Dog's arms as her knees gave out and tears began to roll down her face.

* * *

She didn't remember how she came to be sitting on the ground, but there she was. Dove pulled her knees to her chest as her sister continued to sob. The tears continued to flow freely down the brunette's face, but her eyes didn't leave the spot where Sophia's body lay. The only other thing that she seemed to be able to register was Carol's sobs getting quieter as she ran off towards camp.

Dove's whole body shook as Daryl knelt in front of her. He didn't say anything, but he didn't need to. His eyes seemed to communicate everything he was trying to, especially how sorry he was. Dove nodded her head weakly as she finally averted her gaze from the dead body of her niece. The redneck's hands were surprisingly gentle as he grasped her arm. Dove took a deep breath as she unfolded her arms and held onto the man's arms for support as he pulled her to her feet.

A scream from up by the group of walkers made Dove jump slightly; her hands instinctively gripped Daryl's hand as he tried to move to help the group. "No, please," Dove pleaded feebly. Daryl looked angry as he turned back to look at the brunette. There was something that he saw that made him stay; though he definitely didn't seem happy about it.

"Get her out of here," Rick shouted as most of the group attempted to pull Beth away from the corpse of her mother. Julian ran forward, panic was the only thing driving him. He didn't want to lose anyone else. A scream tore from his throat as he picked up a shovel from the side of the barn and brought it down on Beth's mother's head. It was only then that they were able to pull the blonde girl away. He couldn't tell if the look Maggie shot him was one of gratitude, anger, or both.

* * *

Julian walked alongside Patricia as Shane followed them up to the house. "You knew that little girl was in that barn and you kept it from us," Shane shouted after them. Julian clenched his jaw as Hershel replied.

"I didn't know," Hershel tried to explain.

"Why was she there," Shane continued to try to interrogate the old man and Julian finally snapped.

The dark haired man turned his head and snapped back at Shane, "Back off, man! Haven't you done enough?"

Shane stared him down and he felt a chill run down his spine as Hershel finally worked up enough energy to speak. "Otis put those people in the barn. Maybe he found her and put her in there before he was killed."

Shane scoffed, "You expect me to believe that? Do I look like an idiot"

Julian narrowed his eyes at the deputy, "He's telling the truth. Otis took care of the barn." He wanted to tell Shane that he didn't look like an idiot, he looked like a maniac; but he didn't have the energy to fight anymore.

"I don't care what you believe," Hershel retorted. Julian put a hand on Hershel's shoulder and attempted to lead him back up the stairs, towards the house, and towards his family while Rick continued to stand in between the two men. "Get him off my land," Hershel shouted at Rick.

"Let me tell you something, man," Shane spoke again as he made a move for Hershel. Julian was just about to jump in between them when Maggie ran down the stairs.

"Don't you touch him," she shouted as she smacked Shane _hard_. "Haven't you done enough?" That was it. Julian was finally able to lead the old farmer up the stairs.

"I mean it…off my land," Hershel stated calmly.

"Hershel. That's enough," Julian whispered as he gave him a nudge towards the house.

Dove watched the whole thing happen from where she sat against the side of the RV. Her hands shook as Dale approached slowly from around the side of the RV. "I'm so sorry," the old man said solemnly as he looked at her for permission to sit. Dove's only response was a feeble nod. "Where's Carol?"

"She's inside," Dove's voice was still thick with tears, though no more fell from her eyes. "I tried to talk to her but she wouldn't say anythin. I don't blame her. It's my fault…"

Dale put a hand on the young woman's shoulder. "Hey. Don't say that."

"Say what? That it's my fault Sophia's dead? Dale, I told her that I would protect her and look what ended up happening," her voice broke as she shook her head. She drew in a deep breath before she spoke again. "Daryl almost got himself killed and that would've been my fault too because he was looking for Sophia and…"

Dale cut her off with a quiet 'hush' before he spoke again. "Sophia isn't your fault. And I think you know that if Daryl died , that wouldn't have been on you either. You don't need to do this to yourself," Dale gave her shoulder a squeeze. "I would say it's going to be okay, but it won't be. Not for a long time. I mean, hell, I still miss my wife like it was yesterday."

Dove sniffled slightly as she ran a hand across her face. She placed her hand on top of the one Dale had placed on her shoulder. "I know…"

"I guess what I'm trying to say is…you're not alone." Dove was grateful for the silence that fell over the next few minutes before she spotted Daryl making his way back up the trail to the RV.

His head hung low as he approached them. Dove's chest felt tight as she waited for him to speak. "We're gonna bury them…all of them. Sophia too." Tears stung Dove's eyes again as she nodded her head. She turned her attention to Dale and a look of understanding passed between them before the old man stood up to help her to her feet.

Words escaped the young woman as she tried to keep herself steady on her feet. Tears filled her hazel eyes as she just stared at the red neck for a moment before she took a step forward and wrapped her arms around him. A sob left her as she felt Daryl tense up from the unexpected physical contact. A hand patted her back, almost awkwardly before he spoke. "I'm sorry."

* * *

Dove was sitting by the RV still with Carl and Dale as she waited for the funeral. Daryl hadn't come out of where he sat in the RV with Carol, but she hadn't heard much noise from in there. Dove rose to her feet as she saw Lori approach. Lori placed a hand on Carl's hat. The little boy glanced up at her and Dove managed a weak smile before she nodded at him. "Go with Dale," Lori quietly instructed her son.

It was silent as Dove hesitantly led Lori up the stairs into the RV. "They're ready," Lori lowered her gaze to the ground as she spoke. Dove's eyes were trained on her sister as she leaned against the back of the passenger seat. Her heart sank as she saw Carol shake her head. "Come on," Lori pleaded gently.

"Why," Carol asked.

"Cause that's your little girl," Daryl answered almost instantly.

Carol finally raised her gaze up from the table to the man, "That's not my little girl. That's some other…thing." Carol's voice sounded hollow. Dove bit down on her thumb to keep from letting out a sob as she meekly nodded her head. "My Sophia was alone in the woods. All this time I thought…" Carol trailed off for a moment. Lori's gaze stayed on Carol as she reached out and placed a gentle hand on Dove's arm. "She didn't cry herself to sleep. She didn't go hungry. She didn't try to find her way back. Sophia died a long time ago."

Dove let out a shaky breath. "Carol…"

Carol just shook her head and continued to stare out the window. Dove didn't know what she felt more of; anger or sadness. Her gaze landed on the flower that was still in the old bottle they had found a few days ago. Her steps were careful as she walked across the RV. She felt Daryl's blue eyes watch her as she pulled the flower from the bottle. "Let's go," she mumbled quietly as Daryl finally hopped down from the counter where he sat.

"I can't believe she did that," Daryl muttered under his breath as the two of them walked towards the gravesite.

"You can't tell people how to grieve," Dove explained simply. As they approached the gravesite, Dove remembered how much she hated funerals. Glenn walked over and gave her a tight hug, followed by T-Dog, and some of the others. Julian approached and extended his condolences with a one armed hug and a mumbled sorry.

The brunette felt safe where she stood in between Lori and Daryl. It wasn't like Otis's funeral. There was no beautiful speeches to be made, it was silent as a graveyard. Dove took a careful step forward and placed the wilted Cherokee Rose on top of Sophia's grave. A quiet sniffle escaped her and she stepped back. She felt surprise instead of fear or anger as she felt a quick, but tight squeeze on her hand from her left side. Dove didn't turn her head, but the gesture was enough. A few seconds passed before the group began to head off in their own directions.

Dove's attention turned to the redneck; she wanted to say something, offer her thanks again for being there and trying, but he was already heading off on his own.

Lori furrowed her eyebrows for a moment before she reached out and placed an arm around the younger woman. "C'mon, sweetie. Let's head back to camp."

Dove didn't have it in her to fight anymore today. She was quiet as she followed the older woman back to her tent. It was early in the day, but all Dove wanted to do was crawl into her sleeping bag and cry. She wasn't even sure if the tears she shed were for Sophia, Carol, or her anger at herself. All she knew was it didn't matter anymore. Sophia was gone and there was no going back from that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's a mental breakdown. *off-key kazoo plays The Final Countdown in the distance*


	19. Nebraska

Julian hurried into the doorway; worry written all over his face as he brushed past Lori. "Anything," Glenn questioned the younger man.

Julian nervously chewed his bottom lip for a moment before he shook his head. "Nothing. My car's gone, though. Could've been him," he glanced over his shoulder at Lori. The brunette woman left the doorway without another word. He felt hurt that Hershel had up and left. Julian understood Hershel being upset, but he couldn't believe him; to just leave his daughters there after what had just happened? He placed a hand on Maggie's shoulder before he turned and exited the room.

It felt wrong to be going through the old farmer's things. It felt even more wrong when Shane lifted up the flask off the dresser and waved it around, "Seems like he found an old friend."

Julian let out a heavy sigh. "That was my grandfather's flask. He gave it to my dad when he died," Maggie explained.

"I didn't take Hershel for a drinker," Rick sounded a little perplexed.

Maggie turned on her heel, "He gave it up on the day I was born. He didn't even allow liquor in the house."

Julian's heart sank as he realized where the old man had gone. "What's the bar in town," Rick picked up on it too.

"Hatlin's," Maggie answered, "he practically lived there in his drinking days."

Julian cast a quick glance at Maggie before he spoke up, "You get me a map and I'll show you exactly where it's at. Best way to get there too," he fidgeted as Glenn spoke up.

"I think I've seen it before. It's by the pharmacy, right?"

Julian nodded his head. "Yeah," he cleared his throat as Maggie laid the map out on top of the small vanity. "You're gonna wanna take this side road if the main ones are blocked. I know you've only been getting there on a horse, Mags," he glanced at his friend as she nodded her head. "You can get around onto the main street from here," he pointed his finger on the map, "Should take you right up to the bar."

Rick clapped the younger man on the shoulder, "Got it. Thank you. Let's go, Glenn." He nodded at the Korean man and Julian's eyebrows shot up.

"What? No," Maggie protested. Julian frowned as he watched her try to argue, only to be stopped by Rick's promise to bring him back. As Rick exited the room, he motioned for Julian to follow.

He hesitated for a moment before he followed the sheriff down the hallway. "I wanna go with you," Julian started.

"No, too many people," Rick shook his head and turned to face him. "I need you here. You stay; take care of Beth, make sure Maggie's okay. You stay with your people. I'll make sure we bring Hershel back," Rick insisted. There was something in his voice that made Julian not even want to argue. Julian slipped back into the room with Beth to keep an eye on her as Lori began to argue with her husband in the hallway.

* * *

Dove laid in her tent and stared up at the roof of it. Carol wasn't back yet; she'd been gone when they got back from the funeral. It had already been a few hours, but she felt like she had to get moving. Her whole body felt heavy as she lifted herself up into a sitting position. Before she left the tent, she pulled her hair up into a ponytail and tried to ignore how bad her hands still shook. She peeked her head out first and only spotted T-Dog sitting outside of his tent.

T-Dog lifted his head up at the sudden rustle from the tent. It was silent between the two friends as Dove slid out of the tent, only to sit down right in front of the opening. Her hazel eyes closed as she allowed the light breeze to sweep over her face. Her thin fingers wrapped around the crystal that still hung from her neck. "Hey," her eyes snapped open at the voice. T was knelt beside her now. "You alright," he questioned and within a second, he's flinched at his own words.

Dove let out a short laugh, "Not sure I'll ever be alright again. I'm not much use layin' around cryin' all day. Might as well get out and do something." Dove shrugged her shoulders as she looked around. "You seen Daryl or Carol around?"

T-Dog just shook his head, "Haven't seen 'em. Daryl fucked off after the funeral, you saw that. Carol…haven't seen her since before in the RV." He placed an arm around his friend's shoulders and pulled her into a one-armed hug. "Don't worry. I'm sure they'll both be fine. Still not sure why you're worried about Dixon though."

Dove shook her head. "Not worried. Just don't want anyone else dyin' today," she blinked back tears before she raised a hand to wipe her eyes. T-Dog studied her face for a moment before he patted her arm.

"Alright, no more questions then," T-Dog mumbled.

Dove let out a snort of laughter, "Well thank you for taking pity on my with your interrogation."

It fell silent before there was a sound of movement behind them. The two turned to look and Dove's heart sank as Carol shuffled her way towards them. T rose from his spot and departed with a nod. Tension was thick in the air between the two sisters as they stared at each other. Without a word, Carol lowered herself to sit next to her younger sister on the ground. Carol's arm was around her now as Dove turned and wrapped both of her arms around her sister. In a weird way, it felt good to not have to grieve alone.

* * *

Inside the house, Julian felt like a caged animal. Maggie was upset about Beth and worried about Glenn. Beth had a fever and just seemed to be getting worse. What made it worse was there was nothing he can do about it. Jimmy walked out of the room and Julian perked up slightly. The younger boy sighed and took the hat off his head. "Still nothing. Maggie keeps tryin' to talk to her but…" Jimmy shrugged his thin shoulders.

Julian ran a hand through his curly hair as he shook his head, "We can't just stand around with our thumbs up our asses. There has to be something we can do, right?"

Jimmy looked uncomfortable, "I think the best thing we can do is wait around for Hershel."

"It's been hours, Jimmy. _Hours._ Who knows when they're gonna get back if nothing's happened to them yet," Julian lowered his voice as he stepped closer to the young man. "Now Rick left me in charge of the house. The least you can do is get your girlfriend a wet rag for her forehead. Don't want her to keep burnin up while we sit here just thinkin of something."

Jimmy frowned; his light eyebrows furrowed as he stared at Julian. Then he turned and stomped off towards the kitchen. Maggie stepped out of the room. "You gotta go easy on him, Jules." Julian pursed his lips as he stared down the hallway. "Don't think Beth would like it too much if she knew you were bein' mean to her boyfriend."

The corner of Julian's mouth ticked up in a small smile before he turned to face the slightly older woman. "Sorry," Julian frowned once more. "Guess I'm just a little stressed."

Maggie placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Sit with Beth. I'll go make sure Jimmy's following the rules and…I'll get you some water." She sounded nervous as she walked off down the hallway. Even though Rick had told him to look out for them, he knew deep down that Maggie was in charge. There was no reason to argue with her as he walked through the door and sat down on the bed across from Patricia. He folded his hands on his lap as he sat there and stared at them for a moment.

He was never a person to really pray, but there was no hurting anyone by starting.

* * *

Dove didn't really want to eat, and she had a feeling that Carol didn't either, but Carol was always good at hiding things. She hid it pretty well as she helped Patricia in the kitchen as Dove tried her best to hide how she just wanted to cry from spending time with Carl in the living room as they waited.

Julian stifled a laugh as Shane got scolded by Patricia for cussing in the house. "Tell 'em, Pat," he whispered under his breath as he walked behind the older woman to take his seat.

"Lori, dinner," Carol called into the hallway.

"She's not in there," Maggie answered almost instantly.

Dove's eyes narrowed as she looked around the room. "Where is she?"

"Carl, when's the last time you saw your mom," Shane asked in an almost too calm manner.

"This afternoon," Carl responded as clear panic began to sink in. Dove placed a hand on top of Carl's head as she shot a nervous look across the table at Dale.

"She went after them," Dale inquired.

"No one said that," Shane stood, "Nobody panic. Gotta be around here somewhere."

Dove pulled back her arm as Carl stood to follow Shane. It made her uneasy how the little boy followed Shane around like a little shadow. Part of her didn't feel like it was safe.

Julian stood up from his seat and pointed to Jimmy. "Go with Patricia. Help with Beth if she needs it, I'm going to help look for Lori." Before anyone could say anything, the young man was out of the room and running off into the night.

Dove rose slowly from her seat as she reached a hand out to Carol, "Listen, I'm sure she's…"

"I'm gonna go find Daryl, maybe he's seen her," Carol turned and was gone before Dove could even finish a thought.

Dove let out a heavy sigh and buried her face in her hands. Frustration weighed heavy on her as she lowered a hand and punched the table. "Damn it," she shouted. A sound from the doorway startled her as she turned and saw Patricia peek into the room. "Ah, sh…oot. Sorry," Dove trailed off as she made eye contact with the woman. It was just a second, then she looked away and followed the path her sister had just taken to leave the house.

Upon hearing about Daryl not going when Lori had asked him too and how this had possibly made her go on her own, her frustration grew. "What a motherfucker," Dove hissed through gritted teeth.

Dale raised a hand at her, "Now calm down. All of us fightin' isn't going to do anything to make sure Lori gets back."

The brunette shook her head before she trudged off back to her tent. Dale was right, but she didn't exactly want to give him the satisfaction of being told that he was right. Despite all of the respect she had for the old man, she was too angry right now to think straight. She was still mad at herself. She was frustrated at Lori for not asking for more help before she left on her own. More than anything, she was angry about Daryl as he had apparently decided to undo all the good he had done over the past few weeks in a matter of hours.

It wasn't too long later that Carol returned back to the tent. Dove picked up on the fact that something wasn't right and followed her inside. "Hey what's wrong?" Carol just sniffled in response. "Carol…Talk to me. What happened?"

Carol lifted her head up and wiped her eyes. "Daryl…I went to check on him again." Dove's stomach turned. "He's right. It's my fault Sophia's gone. All I had to do was watch her and I couldn't even do that," Carol's voice cracked and something inside Dove cracked right along with it. All the anger she felt that day boiled over and she saw red.

She heard Carol asking where she was going as she stormed out of the tent and stomped off in the direction she'd seen her return from earlier. Her hands balled up into fists as she drew closer to a fire. Daryl stood up from his spot by the fire as he caught sight of her as she approached. Any chance he had of starting an argument left as she grabbed one of the rabbits off the line he had it on and whipped it at him. It missed her target but hit him dead center in his chest. "What the fuck's wrong with you," Daryl snarled at her.

Dove pointed a finger at him, "I should be asking you that! You get your rocks off on being a fucking bully or something?"

Daryl took a step closer. "You don't know what the hell you're talking about," he snapped at her and waved his hand in an attempt to dismiss her.

"Oh, I think I know exactly what I'm talking about," Dove's voice got louder as she began to follow him through his small camp. "You feel guilty about what happened so you're taking it out on the easiest target. That makes you a fucking bully." She hissed at him as she stepped in between him and his tent.

"Out of my way," Daryl shouted as he turned on his heel and walked towards the fire again.

Dove let out an angry huff as she stalked after him again. "What? You can't handle it when someone gives it back to you? If I find out that you hit my sister or somethin, I swear to every God that I'm going to push your ass into that fire, Daryl Dixon." She stopped as she came back into the small circle around the fire.

"Didn't do anything like that. The hell you think I am," Daryl actually seemed offended by her words and it made her pause. She opened her mouth in response but couldn't get the words out as Daryl spoke. His voice was lower, but it was obvious he was still in a rage. "All you both had to do was keep an eye on her."

"You think I don't know that? You think Carol doesn't know that? Who gave you the right to say anything like that," Dove pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head. Quiet fell over the small camp as Dove reached beneath her shirt. It took her a few seconds, but the second small chain around her neck was off and in her hand. "Here," she frowned as she tossed it at his feet. "Maybe it'll help you find your fucking sense of compassion," she spared one last look at the redneck before she walked back off into the darkness.

Daryl waited until he was sure she was gone before he leaned down to pick up the chain from the ground. He squinted in the dark, the thing glinted in the firelight as he held it up to his face. He let out a grunt before he kicked the discarded rabbit the woman had thrown at him to the side. It was no good anymore, anyway.


	20. Dreams

_Now here you go again_   
_You say you want your freedom_   
_Well, who am I to keep you down_   
_It's only right that you should_   
_Play the way you feel it_   
_But listen carefully_   
_To the sound of your loneliness_

_Dreams- Fleetwood Mac_

* * *

Lori’s safe return to camp might have been the first good thing to happen in what felt like days. Dove hurried over with the others as her friend emerged from the car. “Where’s Rick,” Lori questioned. Dove’s harsh gaze fell to Shane as he spoke.

“I had to get you back here,” he stated as if it were that simple.

Julian’s jaw dropped as he stared at the deputy. “Probably better ways to get someone to follow you than to lie and tell them someone’s safe when they’re not?” He winced as Maggie punched him in the side.

“You asshole,” Lori growled as she stomped past him. “He’s my husband,” Dove’s eyes widened as Lori punched Shane in the chest. The brunette stepped forward and pulled her back along with Andrea.

“I will go after him! I’ll find him.” Shane spoke again, “Now first things first, I gotta…I gotta look after you.” Dove scoffed before Shane continued, “I gotta make sure the baby’s alright.” 

The silence and shock throughout the group was palpable. Then Carl stepped forward, the poor boy didn’t seem to understand as he looked almost excited. “You’re having a baby,” he questioned his mother. Lori glanced sideways for a moment. Dove punched the bridge of her nose in frustration as Carl continued. “Why didn’t you tell me?” 

“Come on,” Dale broke the silence, “Let’s make sure you’re alright.” As Lori followed Andrea towards the house, Dove took a step forward.

“You’re a real fucking piece of work,” she hissed at Shane before she turned on her heel and followed the other women up to the house.

Julian turned his head and watched the others leave before he turned back to Shane, “So are you really gonna go look for Rick or were you lying to her about that too?” Maggie shot him another warning look. “What? Are we all supposed to just sit around and listen to this and not question it?”

Shane stood up straighter and ran a hand over his head, “Why don’t you just mind your business about my people?” 

Julian glared at Shane, “Why didn’t you just mind your business about ours?”

Maggie took a quick step between them as Shane began to step forward. “Julian, go back to the house and just shut up. Both of you! Rick and Glenn will be back soon. They have to be.”

* * *

Dove sunk to the floor across from the couch and ran her hand across the hardwood floor as Lori tried to find the best way to explain things to her son. Carl peeked around his mother at the older man. Dale shook his head, “Don’t look at me. That’s your father’s job.”

The little boy turned his head slowly and glanced at Dove. The young woman let out a quiet snort of laughter before she raised a hand in the area. “Don’t look at me, either. I never worked with kids. Your daddy’ll be back soon anyway. I’m sure he’ll love to have that chat with you,” Dove finished with a little smirk. 

“If the baby’s a girl, can we name her Sophia?” It felt like a knife to the gut, though it was obvious that Carl hadn’t meant it that way. Lori avoided the younger woman’s gaze as Dove stared back down at her hands.

“I’m sorry, bud, I thought you knew,” Shane mumbled from the doorway.

“Big brother Carl,” the little boy grinned as he flicked the brim of his hat. “Pretty cool, huh?”

“I say that’s very cool,” Shane agreed.

Dove looked up and spotted Lori trying her best to avoid any interaction with Shane. She pursed her lips as she tried to think back to the quarry. Things had definitely not been this weird between the two of them when they were there. Sophia had asked Carl if Shane was his dad and had to explain to Dove that he was not, in fact, the young boy’s father. Dove felt a sinking feeling in her chest, and she wasn’t sure if it was because of thoughts of Sophia or her realization of the true predicament that Lori Grimes had found herself in.

“How about a little later after she’s had some rest,” Andrea frowned. Dove shifted her gaze from Lori to the blonde woman and back to the doorway. 

“Lori, I had to get you back here. You wouldn’t have come otherwise,” Shane reasoned. It was a pretty shitty reason. “How about you just hear me out, please?”

Lori looked torn, but she finally nodded her head. “Give me a minute, bud? Go with Dove.” Dove nodded as she pulled herself to her feet and put an arm around the little boy.

Dove tried to smile as she flicked the brim of the sheriff’s hat Carl wore, “Let’s give your mama a few minutes, little man.”

Carl waited until they were out on the porch before he spoke up. “Is everything alright with my mom?”

Hazel eyes flickered to Dale before she turned back to Carl and spoke. “I’m sure your mom is just fine. She’s probably just…worried about everything with your dad being missing and all that. Especially after today, she’s probably just wanting him to come back,” she smiled faintly.

Carl nodded his head slowly, his head turned back to the house. “I hope that’s right.”

Dale didn’t look very comfortable with leaving Lori alone in the house with Shane. Dove couldn’t help but agree with him on that, though neither of them had to say anything about it. 

* * *

Julian was worried. They weren’t back yet. Beth wasn’t getting any better and Hershel was still out there. His nerves were shot, but he couldn’t afford to show weakness. Not right now anyway. So, he sat on the opposite side of the bed from Maggie, held Beth’s hand, and stared at her. He felt like any minute now, she would pop up and be the same bright and bubbly kid. Deep down he knew that even when she did snap out of it, she wouldn’t be like that for a long time.

“You just need to be strong for her,” he heard Andrea say from where she had sat next to him. 

“I was just reminding her about…never mind,” Maggie shook her head. Andrea encouraged her to continue. “My dad would die if he heard this. My first summer back from college, I drove home, dumped my stuff off, went straight out to the stable for a ride.” Julian chuckled quietly. He knew this story. “My family comes back from church and Beth grabs my things and start unpacking my stuff upstairs. It was sweet until this one here,” Maggie patted Beth’s hand, “starts rifling through my backpack. She finds this little plastic container with these pink and green candies inside. She didn’t even know I was on the pill. She was so freaked out by the idea of me, boys, and sex she runs outside and chucks them in the duck pond. And I ride up, I see this, I’m screaming. She’s crying and Shawn runs outside, thinks one of us is drowning. The jerk busts out laughing as soon as he finds out. My dad comes out asking what’s going on, and Beth turns around and bats her eyelashes and just tells him we were swimming.”

Julian snorted, “Then this one,” he nodded at Maggie. “Decided it was a good idea to call my sister and start freaking out when she finally gets inside. Maggie was a hellion, but Beth knows how to raise a different type of hell,” he joked. The smile slowly formed on his face as he squeezed Beth’s hand again.

“Glenn and Rick will bring your dad back,” Andrea tried to assure Maggie. 

“Glenn’s a good guy,” Maggie sniffled. 

Shane seemed to be trying to stay true to his word as he began to load up the car to head out and look for Rick. Dove leaned back against the RV, cigarette burning down in her hand as she watched Daryl examine his rifle. She’d woken up that morning feeling just a little bit ashamed of how she’d lashed out at him, but she didn’t exactly know how to have that talk. Part of her still thought he deserved it. 

“He doesn’t want Rick back,” Dove heard Dale tell Andrea. “Or Hershel. With those two gone, he’s got everything he wants and no one to tell him otherwise,” the old man shook his head. Dove found herself drifting closer to the conversation; Dale was getting pretty ballsy talking about something like that with Shane in earshot. 

“Shane has done more to keep this group alive than anybody, including Rick,” Andrea narrowed her eyes at Dale.

“Now I know you didn’t just say that,” Dove spoke up as the attention of the two turned to her. “You have been spewing some real bullshit over the last few weeks, but I have to say, that has to be the worst thing I’ve heard.” She shook her head.

“You think Rick’s done more,” Andrea questioned as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. 

“I know he has. He bargained with the group at the nursing home to get Glenn back. He went back to try and save Merle and so we could get the guns. I mean in case you haven’t noticed, without that bag of guns, our chances of being alive right now would be pretty slim,” Dove counted off on her fingers. “Rick has tried his best to keep us all safe! The only person Shane has tried to keep safe is himself and maybe Lori and Carl. The rest of us are just along for the ride,” Dove scowled at the blonde woman.

“I mean, I have to agree. There’s no way you can possibly believe that Andrea.” The disappointment in Dale’s voice was obvious. 

“I do,” Andrea stated. 

Dove stepped up beside Dale as Andrea moved towards the car. “What a dumbass,” she grumbled as she finally tossed her cigarette to the ground. The sound of a vehicle approaching broke through the silence.

They were back. Dove jogged up towards the house with everyone else. A small smile was on her face as she watched Carl run up to hug his father. 

“Who the hell is that,” T-Dog spoke up and Dove narrowed her eyes as she moved closer to Carol. 

“That’s Randall,” Glenn spoke up.

“Holy shit,” Julian muttered as he turned and headed back into the house.

* * *

Dove didn’t like the fact that they were in there trying to decide what to do about someone’s life. Rick had the right idea, she thought to, to let the boy go once he was healed. Andrea was on a real winning streak that day. “Isn’t that the same as leaving him for the walkers,” the blonde inquired.

Dove placed a hand over her mouth as she leaned back in her chair. Her attention shifted from the blonde to the door as Daryl entered. His eyes scanned the room until they landed on what she could only assume was herself and Carol. A new sense of shame rolled over her as, instead of the scowl she’d been expecting, he nodded his head at them with a small forced smile. Dove’s hazel eyes glanced towards Carol as the older woman shrugged her shoulders. Dove tried her best to keep her eyes forward, but she could feel her heart beat faster as the man walked across the room and stood across from them.

“He knows where we are,” Shane said.

“He was blindfolded the whole way here, he’s not a threat,” Rick explained.

“You killed three of their men, you took one hostage,” Shane began to ramble. “But they just ain’t gonna come looking?”

Dove frowned as she lowered her hand, “You would rather them have left the poor kid out in the middle of the night with a fence through his leg to get eaten alive?” 

Rick ran a hand through his hair, “They left him for dead. Like Dove said, they saw him with the fence through him and they left him there to die. No one is looking.”

T-Dog spoke up, “we should still post a guard.”

Hershel shrugged his shoulders, “He’s out cold right now, will be for hours.”

“You know what? I’m gonna go get him some flowers and candy,” Shane exclaimed sarcastically.

Julian ground his teeth as he spoke up from beside Hershel, “Were you always this much of an asshole or is this just an end-of-the-world-gonna-show-my-true-colors bullshit because I’m getting really tired of it man.”

“Julian…” Patricia warned. 

“Sorry, Pat. Sorry, I know no cursing in the house, but someone had to say it! Randall is not a threat,” he shook his head. “Randall is a little punk but he’s what? 120 soaking wet. Carl could probably kick his a…. butt if he wanted to.”

Shane scoffed and shook his head. “Look at this folks, we’re back in Fantasyland.”

“You know, we haven’t even dealt with what you did at my barn yet,” Hershel turned quickly as Shane began to exit the room. Julian’s dark eyes widened in shock. He expected it from Maggie, maybe. Not Hershel. “Let me make this perfectly clear, once and for all. This is my farm. Now I wanted you gone. Rick talked me out of it, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. So, do us both a favor? Keep your mouth shut.” 

Julian looked down at his shoes as he tried to keep a shocked laugh from coming out of his mouth. As everyone began to file out, he looked up and put a hand on Hershel’s shoulder. “Wait until Beth hears about what you just did, man.” Julian smiled as he patted Hershel’s shoulder excitedly. “She’s gonna be so mad she missed it.” Dove rose from her chair as the two men exited the room and entered the hallway. 

The brunette watched as Carol tried to approach Daryl, who had somehow made it to the door, only for him to push his way outside without allowing her to say anything. Dove closed the distance between herself and her sister quickly as they left the house. “I think he just needs some space,” Dove whispered to Carol.

“Maybe,” Carol hesitated as she watched Daryl trek back towards his lonely little campsite. “Maybe you shouldn’t have gone and yelled at him last night either.” She frowned and Dove sighed.

Dove nervously rubbed her forearm as she leaned against the porch railing. “You think I don’t know that? I was just…I was angry. I’ll find a way to make it up to you…and maybe him too. As long as he deserves it.” She looked down at the porch.

Carol let out a heavy sigh and took a few steps forward to kiss her younger sister on the top of her head. “That’s all I can ask…”

* * *

The next week felt like the longest week of her life. There had been a few times when she had gone up to try and talk with Daryl, but it always seemed like the universe was telling her that now wasn’t the time. The first time she’d tried to do it, Maggie had asked her for help with collecting eggs. Dove had given the other woman a confused look but had helped her anyway. It was perfectly clear to anyone with eyes that Maggie was important to Glenn and Glenn was her best friend. A few other times, Daryl had been pulled aside by other men in the group to watch Randall or do other things that Dove didn’t care to hear about.

About 3 days into it, Dove had all but thrown herself backwards onto her sleeping bag in frustration. “What’s wrong now,” Carol asked, but didn’t look up from her sewing. Carol had taken to fixing up winter coats that they’d salvaged from the highway since it was starting to get colder out.

Dove ran a hand through her dark hair and closed her eyes. “My mom always used to say that the universe will give you signs when things are meant to happen. You think that me getting interrupted every time I try to apologize to that jerk means that he deserved it?” She opened one eye to look at her sister as a smirk crept onto her face. 

Carol rolled her eyes. “Your mom was a smart lady and she believed what she believed so I won’t tell you she was wrong. If you want to go off that though, maybe the time just isn’t right. Maybe it’s like you said. You just need to give him time,” the older woman looked up and flashed her sister a comforting smile. 

Dove had taken to doing something she felt like she could control and help with. Beth. It would be a little different if the young woman were willing to talk, but Dove understood. The brunette entered the kitchen as Lori walked out with a tray of food for the teenager. “Oh vegetables,” Dove chirped as she reached over the saltshaker and picked up a piece of cucumber. She took a bite out of it as she leaned back against the counter. “Something wrong, Maggie?”

The younger woman shrugged her shoulders as she drummed her fingers on the counter. “Just everything with Glenn. It’s kind of got me all worried, you know? What if I messed things up?”

Dove sighed and popped the rest of the piece into her mouth. After a few moments, she spoke. “Guys are weird. They’ll do nice shit for you one day and tell you to basically go fuck yourself the next.”

“Speaking from experience,” Maggie quirked an eyebrow.

Dove rolled her hazel eyes and swatted playfully at the woman. “I’m 28 years old. If I hadn’t experienced that yet, I might be worried.” _Nice avoiding the question_. “My point is that Glenn didn’t do anything like that to you. What I think happened is that maybe Glenn never felt like that about someone before and it spooked him. I wouldn’t worry too much about it. I think Glenn’s crazy about you. He’ll come around.”

Maggie looked down at the counter and nodded. “You think so?” Dove nodded. “Thanks…”

“Absolutely. Would you like to schedule another appointment? Knowing all of these assholes, I’ll be booked until the actual end of the world,” Dove snorted as she reached for another piece of cucumber. Maggie let out a light chuckle. It was nice to have friends.

* * *

Julian was caught off guard as Lori came out of Beth’s room white as a ghost. “Hey what’s wrong,” he questioned the woman as she passed. 

Lori didn’t stop but turned slightly and pointed back to Beth’s room. “You stay with her. I’m gonna go find Maggie and Hershel.” Julian didn’t have time to say anything as he spotted the knife in her hand. His heart sank to his stomach as he turned and headed down the hallway. He peeked his head into the bedroom.

Beth was faced away from the doorway when he entered. “Beth…Bethie.” Julian said quietly as he walked over and took a seat next to her feet. “Beth. I need you to tell me what you were planning to do with the knife.” 

The blonde didn’t move at all, but she answered. “It’s all pointless now, Julie. What’s the point anymore? Even if we live, we’ll probably just end up like my mom. And Shawn.”

Julian’s hands shook as he rested his elbows on his knees. His gaze focused onto the floor in front of him. He wanted to be able to reassure her as best he could, but there was no way that he could do it. He wanted to believe that there was hope for the future, but part of him couldn’t help but think that Beth was right. That didn’t mean that anyone else had to die, though.

He was snapped out of his thoughts as Lori ran back into the doorway followed by Dove. Dove’s hazel eyes were wide and panicked as she entered the room. Lori hadn’t explained much, just that she’d found Beth trying to cut herself and couldn’t find Maggie. Dove half expected to enter the room and see blood but relief flooded through her as Maggie ran down the hallway. 

She was like a bat out of hell as she descended onto her younger sister. “Are you serious? What do you think dad’s gonna do when he finds out?” Julian chewed nervously on his thumbnail.

“What’s he gonna do? Kill me for committing suicide,” Beth sounded emotionless as she responded.

Dove sighed as she pulled her hair back away from her face. “Beth, listen. I know that it feels like you can’t feel anything right now, but that was a very permanent solution to a temporary problem. I know how much it hurts to lose someone; believe me I know.” Her voice cracked slightly as she spoke. “But Maggie’s right. How do you think your dad would feel if you did it?”

The blonde girl stared straight ahead and shrugged her thin shoulders.

“Stop being a brat,” Maggie sat down on the bed. “He’d die. So would I. This isn’t just about you.” Julian stood up slowly and put an arm on Dove’s shoulder. A look from the younger man told her that maybe this was a conversation the two women needed to have on their own. 

“How are you doing,” Dove turned her attention to Julian as he shut the door behind them. 

Julian shook his head, “It’s not me you need to worry about. Beth would never do something like that.” He sucked in a deep breath as shouts started to come from inside the bedroom. Dove placed a gentle hand on his back and began to lead him to the kitchen. “Beth loves Maggie. She would never fight with her like that.” He wandered through into the dining room and took a seat.

“This could’ve been handled better,” Andrea spoke.

Dove felt her anger flare up again as Andrea answered Lori. “You shouldn’t have taken the knife away.” 

“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” Dove grumbled. 

“Excuse me,” Lori sounded truly shocked.

“You were wrong. Like Dale taking my gun, that wasn’t your decision,” Andrea sounded so sure of herself.

Dove bit down on her tongue. She didn’t want to fight anymore, she really didn’t.

“She has to choose to live on her own, she has to find her own reasons,” Andrea stated.

Dove snapped, “You are a grown ass woman capable of making your own decisions. Beth is a sixteen-year-old fucking child. You want to give someone who wants to die a way out?”

“What is your problem,” Andrea turned her attention to Dove.

“My problem is that just because you’re a fucking lawyer, you think you know everything,” Dove pointed a finger at the older woman. 

“And you really have the authority to tell me about a situation like this,” Andrea’s tone was condescending, and it just served to fuel the fire.

“No, but I do have a degree in psychology and several years of experience to tell you about the situation,” Dove explained, and Andrea rolled her eyes. “I swear to God, if I had that here with me, I would shove it in your face, then roll it up and shove it so far up your…” 

Lori moved behind Dove and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Stop it! Both of you! Andrea, you need to stop. Dove, I know what you’re saying, and I agree with you but it’s not making it any better.”

“How,” Andrea threw a hand in the air.

“Would you want me to tie a noose for her too then,” Lori snapped.

“If she’s serious, she’ll figure out a way,” Andrea shrugged.

“True but it’s a whole hell of a lot easier when you wanna give her a butcher knife,” Dove glared at the blonde woman.

“Doesn’t mean I can stop her or let her know that I care,” Lori explained. Dove admired how the woman was trying so hard to hold it together. Odds were, she probably wanted to scream and fight as much as Dove did. 

“She believes that suicide is the best option,” Andrea said as if she had suddenly discovered it was raining outside.

“That’s not an option,” Lori shook her head.

“Of course it is.”

Dove’s jaw dropped. She managed to tune out half of what Andrea said until she heard it. “I help keep this place safe.”

“If trying to shoot Daryl in the head counts as keeping this place safe, then you sure did,” Dove chided back.

“The men can handle this on their own. They don’t need your help,” Lori asserted. 

“I’m sorry. What would you have me do,” Andrea asked. That baffled Dove. It was a farm, there were a million and one things to do and somehow, everyone else managed to keep themselves busy.

“There’s plenty of work to go around,” Lori frowned. 

“Are you serious,” Andrea shouted. “Everything falls apart and you’re in my face over skipping laundry?”

Dove scoffed as Lori continued. “Puts a burden on the rest of us. On me, Carol, Dove, Patricia, and Maggie. Cookin and cleanin and caring for Beth. So yes, there is more than enough work to keep you busy too.” Dove’s eyes widened slighlty as she caught the angry look on Andrea’s face. “You don’t care about anyone but yourself. You sit up on that RV, working on a tan with a shotgun in your lap.” 

Andrea scowled and began to explain how she was on watch, but Lori was having none of it. The two women continued to argue back and forth until Andrea dropped a bomb. “Go in there and tell that little girl that everything’s gonna be okay, just like it is for you. She’ll get a husband, a son, baby, boyfriend. She just has to look on the bright side.”

Dove boiled over as she walked around the table and gave Andrea a hard shove. “Get out!”

Andrea turned her attention to the brunette, “And you. You act so high and mighty but…”

“She said, get out,” Julian’s voice came from the doorway and it made everyone freeze. Andrea looked startled. “You don’t get to talk to people like that in this house. If I hear you talking about Beth like that again, I’ll tell Maggie exactly what you said about her. Then you’ll really regret it.” 

Lori finally seemed to crumble a little bit as Andrea exited the house with a slam of the door. “I…”

“You don’t need to explain anything to me, Lori. I get it. In traumatic situations, people will…find comfort in other people. You don’t need to explain anything,” Dove stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Lori. She really wished she’d gotten to hit Andrea again.

* * *

When he heard Maggie going towards Beth’s room and calling for her, Julian rose from his seat and was at the doorway in seconds. Then the glass shattered. Maggie flashed him a panicked look as she began to knock on the door. Julian walked over; panic written all over his face. “Bethie, open up!” Julian banged on the door. “Don’t do this,” he echoed Maggie. His heart sank when she mentioned she’d left her with Andrea. Julian slammed his shoulder against the door once, but it was a hard old wooden door. There was a better chance of him dislocating something than getting the door opened before something happened. “Beth just open the door! Please!” He shouted through the door. 

The door finally swung open as Lori pried it open with a fire poker. His stomach turned as Beth turned and he saw her clutch her bloody wrist. “I’m sorry,” she started to cry. It felt like things moved in slow motion as Maggie walked forward into the bathroom and put an arm around her sister. With a word, Julian ran off to collect bandages for his friend. He was alone for the first time in days and for the first time, he let the tears that he’d been holding back fall.

* * *

The last thing any of them expected was for Rick and Shane to return with Randall, but that was what happened. Dove didn’t like the idea of Daryl going off to question the boy on his own. She paced nervously between the tents with her sister as she waited for the man to return.

It felt like hours, but Daryl eventually emerged from the barn and walked back up towards the camp. “Boy there’s got a gang. 30 men,” Daryl explained as he approached them. “They have heavy artillery and they ain’t lookin to make friends. They roll through here, our boys are dead. And our women, they’re gonna wish they would be.” A shiver ran down Dove’s spine at the thought. Her hazel eyes drifted down to look at Daryl’s hands as Carol asked about his knuckles. “Had a little chat,” he answered simply as he stepped through, back to his campsite. 

Dove let out a heavy sigh before she walked back to her tent. She paused for a moment before she began to dig through her backpack. Down near the bottom of the front pocket, she found what she was looking for. Some antiseptic and some clean tissues. Probably not the best, but that would have to do for a peace offering.

It felt like she had bricks tied to her shoes the closer that she got to her destination. “You coming to throw more shit at me,” Daryl called out the moment he spotted her. 

“To be fair,” Dove raised a hand as she stopped just behind him, “I was aiming for your head.”

“Your aim was off,” Daryl grumbled.

“Well, it’s been a while since softball,” she shrugged her shoulders and pointed to the spot next to him. “Can I sit.”

Daryl just let out a grunt and Dove lowered herself to sit next to him. Her gaze went to his knuckles again. “You didn’t have to do that, you know.” She held out the antiseptic to him with a raised eyebrow.

“I did what I had to do,” Daryl just shrugged his shoulders. He looked at the items in her hand before he begrudgingly held his hand out to her.

Dove sighed as she gently took Daryl’s hand in hers and began to dab at the blood on his knuckles with a tissue. “You did more than you had to. That seems to be a pattern with you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean,” Daryl scoffed. 

Dove shrugged as she continued to dab at his hand. “It means that you almost got yourself killed looking for Sophia. You beat the shit out of some kid to find out all the things you had to in order to protect the group…” 

Daryl frowned, “Any of them would’ve done it if they had to.”

Dove furrowed her eyebrows as she dabbed the antiseptic onto his knuckles now. “But you’re the one who did. You do just as much for us as Rick does. I think you need to realize how much people appreciate it. How much I appreciate it.” The corner of her mouth turned up into a small smirk, “When you’re not being a bully. Sorry about that by the way. I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”

“You can’t tell people how to grieve,” Daryl said to her and she stopped for a moment. Her gaze raised to Daryl and she released his hand as she spotted the small smile on his face.

“You’re right. You can’t. Now just shut your mouth and give me your other hand,” Dove rolled her eyes as Daryl placed his hand in hers. It felt good to finally be able to make things right.


	21. Judge, Jury, Executioner

It was clear to anyone with eyes that Dale was on a warpath. Dove couldn’t necessarily blame him, but surely there were better ways to go about trying to save someone from dying. The old man’s passionate call to action to try and save the boy’s life was the last thing she expected as she hurried back to camp after she helped with Daryl. “Dove, I really need to talk to you. You might actually have some sense,” Dale approached her quickly from the direction of camp.

Dove blinked quickly and glanced over her shoulder before her focus returned to Dale. “Well, I’ll choose to take that as a compliment. What’s going on?”

“Rick’s talking about killing Randall,” Dale exclaimed. “Everyone’s going to meet up later and talk about it. I don’t think that they should do it. You know that guilty by association and not giving someone a second chance does more harm than good.” Dove frowned as she tapped her foot. “Just stand with me later. All we need is a few people to see sense! And…and maybe you can talk to Carol.”

Dove sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “This is totally different than anything I worked with, Dale. I didn’t work with potentially violent offenders like the people in his group.” 

Dale frowned. “What?”

The brunette ran a hand through her hair, “You heard what Daryl said. Now that’s not saying that I outright want to kill Randall before you jump down my throat.” Dove help a hand up. “Now what I’m saying is, if we let him live? What if he dips in the middle of the night and brings his people back here? Hell, I wouldn’t blame him with all this talk about people killing him and shit. Call me crazy, but I’d rather my sister and I not have to get raped and murdered.” Dove stood up straighter and marched back towards camp. “I’ll think about it.”

“I’m going to talk to Daryl,” he called after her.

“Be my guest! Odds are, you won’t get to do much talkin,” Dove rolled her eyes as she continued to walk away from the old man. 

Julian paced the living room; an uneasy feeling had settled in his stomach since Rick and Shane had gotten back. Maggie had confirmed, to Glenn at least, that Randall wasn’t lying about going to school with her. Randall had been in the same year as him, but he only recognized his name. Randall was a little bit of a weird kid, but he just didn’t want to think that someone he knew could be dangerous. Especially after what happened on the road with Mara, that could have been him in the barn. The thought of it sent a shiver down his spine.

* * *

“Heaven is just another lie and if you believe that, you’re an idiot,” Carl spat at Carol before he headed off towards the field.

Dove stopped in her tracks and stared, wide-eyed. Carol turned quickly, a distressed look on her face. The younger woman rubbed her hands together and shrugged. “Don’t look at me. I’m not in the business of disciplining Lori’s child for her,” Dove’s eyes didn’t leave Carl’s retreating back as she spoke.

_You can’t judge how others grieve._

“It’s not okay,” Carol’s voice snapped Dove out of her thoughts and she rushed over. 

“I’ll have a talk with him,” Rick reasoned, and he passed Dove as she joined the two older women. 

“See? We’ll…we’ll…we’ll deal with it. If you can calm down so that I can…” Lori began before Carol cut her off.

“Don’t tell me to calm down,” Carol snapped.

“Care,” Dove cut in and placed a hand on Carol’s shoulder. “Don’t. It’s not Lori’s fault.” 

“I don’t need you to patronize me,” Carol kept her attention on Lori, “Everyone either avoids me or they treat me like I’m crazy. I lost my daughter. I didn’t lose my mind!” Dove dropped her hand as Carol stomped off.

“I…shit, Lori. Sorry,” Dove groaned as she rubbed her face.

Lori shook her head, “It’s fine. I get it. I…”

“I’ll handle it. Don’t worry about it. Everyone just…calm the hell down already,” Dove grunted as she stomped off to follow her sister. “Jesus christ,” she hissed under her breath as she shoved her hands into her pockets. “Carol,” she called out as she closed the distance between her sister. “Carol! Just wait!”

“Why?” Carol turned quickly; Dove took a step back. “Are you gonna tell me to calm down too?”

“No. I…” Dove stuttered out.

“Because I don’t need it from you too! You’re just as bad as them. You avoided me and now I feel like we just tip-toe around each other,” Carol frowned. “I don’t need you to analyze everything I do or help me or…”

Dove shook her head, “All I have ever done since I was a little kid is try to help you! Way to pick a time to say it.” She looked down at the ground for a moment. “Just forget it then.” 

Carol huffed. “That’s not what I…”

Dove threw her hands up in the air. “All I have ever done is help you, Carol! I tried to look out for Sophia for you and we both know how that worked out.” Dove frowned as Carol’s eyes flickered around. “Now it may not have worked out so great in the past, but don’t you dare try to shut me out! Or Lori too, to top it off. She wasn’t trying to patronize you! You have to realize that we are trying to _help_ you.”

Carol’s lip twitched as she glanced up at the sky. “I…” Dove took a step closer to her sister and waited. “I’m just so tired,” Carol’s voice broke but it seemed like there were no more tears for her to cry. 

Dove swallowed hard as she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her older sister. “I am too. But listen, that’s why we all have to talk to each other. Sometimes the load is too heavy to carry alone. That’s what I’m here for. It was kind of my job,” Dove joked, and Carol let out a quiet chuckle as she hugged her sister tighter. 

Everyone else was already fighting so much; there was no reason for them to take part in it.

Dove rubbed her sister’s arm. “Listen, we’re gonna be just fine. You and me.” She held out her pinky finger and wiggled it. “Come on,” she chirped in a sing-song voice.

Carol rolled her eyes before she linked her pinky with her sister. “Happy?”

“That’s much better,” Dove grinned as she pulled her hand away and put an arm around Carol’s shoulders. “Now listen, before we get to the house, I have got to tell you about what Dale is doing. You are not gonna believe this man,” she shook her head.

“Trying to vouch for them to not kill Randall,” Carol questioned as they started to walk.

“How’d you guess,” Dove scoffed.

“Sounds like Dale, I guess. A real moral conscious,” Carol mused. 

* * *

The air was almost electric as everyone waited for Rick to enter so they could finally have that talk. Dove wished she could fast forward through time and just get this over with. Julian sat in the corner and chewed on his thumbnail nervously. Hadn’t enough people died already? He sat up straighter as Rick entered and then it started.

“So how do we do this,” Glenn questioned the room.

“Take a vote? Does it have to be unanimous,” Andrea questioned. Dove sat on the arm of the couch and shared a nervous look with Hershel before she turned her attention back to Rick.

“Majority rules,” Lori offered.

Rick raised his hands in the air. “Well, wait. Let’s…let’s just see where everybody stands. Then we can talk through the options.” 

“Well, where I sit, there’s only one way to go forward,” Shane started. Julian’s dark gaze shot over to Shane as he slowly shook his head. 

“Killing him,” Dale cut in. “Right? I mean, why even bother to take a vote?” Dove could feel Dale’s eyes on her as she shifted uncomfortably; she unconsciously inched closer to her sister. “It’s pretty clear which way the wind’s blowing.”

Rick frowned, “Well, if people believe we should spare him, I want to know.” Rick was really a standup guy. Dove felt reassured in her defense of his leadership to Andrea.

Dale shook his head, “I can tell you it’s a small group. Maybe just me and Glenn…maybe Dove.” 

Glenn spoke up. “I think you’re pretty much right about everything all the time, Dale. But this…”

“They’ve got you scared,” Dale assumed.

Dove stood up from the arm of the couch now. “Don’t you put him on the spot, Dale. That is just wrong and you know it!” She wrung her hands together, “Now listen, I understand where you’re coming from, I do. But I told you before, I’m not scared of that kid in the barn. I’m scared of what happens if we let him live and he freaks out because he knows we wanted to kill him,” her gaze flickered to Shane before she focused on Rick, “So I’m siding with you. Sorry, Dale.” She huffed and crossed her arms in front of her chest. 

“We’ve lost too many people already,” Glenn added.

“How about you,” Julian stiffened as Dale pointed over at Maggie.

Maggie shared a quick look with the younger man before she spoke. “Couldn’t we continue to keep him prisoner?”

“Just another mouth to feed,” Daryl answered instead. 

“Could be a mean winter,” Hershel added.

“We could ration better,” Lori inquired. 

“Well, he could be an asset,” Dale offered. “Give him a chance to prove himself!”

“That is extremely unethical,” Dove sighed. “You can’t keep a person locked up in a room like that for weeks and expect them to come out and be ready to be a functioning member of a group that kept them prisoner,” Carol placed a hand on her shoulder.

“We’re not letting him walk around,” Rick spoke. His word seemed final.

“We could put an escort on him,” Maggie attempted to reason with Rick.

Shane scoffed, “Who wants to volunteer for that duty?”

Julian raised his hand, “I’d do it.” 

Shane rolled his eyes and Rick raised a hand towards the young man, “I…Thank you, but I don’t see that as an option right now. I don’t think any of us should be walking around with this guy.” Dove frowned as she glanced over at Daryl. He seemed to want this over as much as she did. 

“Say we let him join us, right?” Shane spoke up again. Something about the way he spoke lately just seemed to make Dove nervous. He seemed so different back at the quarry, but now it was like every syllable was one step closer to a nuclear bomb going off. “Maybe he’s helpful. Maybe he’s nice. We let our guard down, then like bird said,” Dove’s shoulders tensed as Shane continued, “maybe he runs off, brings back his 30 men.”

“So the answer is to kill him to prevent a crime that he may never even attempt,” Dale shouted. “If we do this, we’re saying there’s no hope. Rule of law is dead. There is no civilization.” 

The silence hung heavy before Hershel piped up. “Could you drive him further out? Leave him like you planned?” 

“There are way too many things that could go wrong. They barely made it back this time,” Lori insisted. Dove couldn’t blame her; she wouldn’t want someone she loved doing something that dangerous either. 

“You could get ambushed,” Daryl added.

“They’re right. We should not put our own people at risk,” Glenn sighed.

“If you go through with it, how would you do it,” Patricia asked.

Julian had enough; he pushed himself up from the floor and was out of the room before anyone could ask any questions.

“He’ll be fine,” Maggie nodded. “Patricia’s right. Would he suffer?”

“We could hang him, right?” Shane asked. “Just snap his neck.”

Dove shook her head, “That might be the worst thing you could do. If you don’t do it right, his neck doesn’t snap, and he just hangs there for minutes and suffocates.” She stuffed her hands in her pockets.

“Shooting may be more humane,” Rick nodded in agreement. 

Dove saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Carol was pressed closer up against the door now, almost like she was waiting to run away too. But it was Daryl who had caught her attention as he moved. The look on his face was different now, something about it made her uneasy as everyone else continued to argue. His blue eyes met her hazel ones for a minute before he gave her a subtle nod. 

“Been talking all day,” Daryl finally spoke up. “All we’ve been doing is going around in circles. You just wanna go around in circles again?”

Dale shouted louder, “This is a young man’s life! And it is worth more than a five-minute conversation! Is this what it’s come to, we kill someone because we can’t decide what else to do with him?” He scoffed at Rick. “You save him! Now look at us. He’s been tortured. He’s gonna be executed. How are we any better than those people that we’re so afraid of?”

“Dale’s right,” Rick spoke up. Dove groaned and ran a hand across the bottom half of her face. This was going to last all night at this rate. “We have a responsibility.

“So what’s the other solution,” Andrea spoke up. 

“Let Rick finish,” Lori cut her off. Dove shot Carol a worried look as Rick began again. 

“We haven’t come up with a single viable option yet,” Andrea threw her arms in the air.

“Still waiting on your contribution, bitch,” Dove whispered so only Carol could hear. 

“Stop it!” All of the shouting and yelling had finally gotten to Carol. “Just stop it. I’m sick of everyone arguing and fighting. I didn’t ask for this! You can’t ask us to decide something like this. Please decide. Either of you, both of you…whatever. But leave me and my sister out of it.”

Dove stared with wide eyes as Carol grabbed her hand and gripped it tight. The brunette nodded after a moment. “Not speaking out or killing him yourself! There’s no difference,” Dale stated as he stared at the two of them.

Dove’s neutral expression quickly turned to a scowl as she took a step towards the old man. “That’s enough,” Rick put both of his hands out. Dove stopped in her tracks. “Anybody else that wants the floor before we make a final decision has the chance.” 

Dove gripped Carol’s hand tighter as they looked around the room. 

“You once said we don’t kill the living,” Dale decided to try one more time. Even through her anger, Dove had to admire his conviction. 

“That was before the living tried to kill us.”

“But don’t you see? If we do this, the people that we were? The world that we knew? It’s dead. And this new world, it’s ugly! It’s harsh! It’s survival of the fittest and that’s a world I don’t want to live in,” Dale shouted. A cold shiver ran down Dove’s spine as she turned and looked out at the setting sun. There was no use in trying anymore. The decision was made before they even walked into the room. Whether it was today, tomorrow, or next week, that boy was going to die.

Dove frowned as Dale finally stopped and walked towards Daryl. “You’re right. This group is broken.” Her gaze followed the old man as he exited the house. 

“Well that was a fucking shit show,” she mumbled out of the corner of her mouth to Carol. Something bad was coming, she could feel it in the air. The electric feeling was still there as Dove and Carol exited the house. It was only a matter of time.

* * *

Dove had started off towards the old barn at a sprint when she saw Rick bringing Carl back up the hill. The sheriff was too focused on his son to notice the dark figure moving quickly through the grass a few yards away. A bang from inside the building drew her attention and Dove walked quickly towards it. The brunette gasped and stumbled backwards as Daryl threw the door open but it was who he had by the arm that really had her shocked, “You didn’t do it?” She asked in a hushed voice.

Daryl frowned, “The hell are you doin here,” he huffed as he grabbed Randall by the arm and began to pull him in the direction of the smaller barn where he was being kept prisoner. Dove followed close behind him.

“I saw Rick bringing Carl back what…”

“Miss? Miss, please,” the young boy began to plead with her.

Dove felt bile rise in her throat as Daryl gave the boy a hard shove forward. “You don’t talk to her. You hear me?”

“Daryl, you don’t have to do this,” Dove whispered.

“Go back to camp,” he hissed back and pointed up towards the house.

The young woman paused for a moment and shook her head. “No.” He stopped, but she cut him off before she could say anything. “Listen, if you’re gonna do this? I’m not gonna let you do it alone. Not saying I want to be in there but…I can keep watch! Or something,” Dove rambled.

Daryl’s blue eyes narrowed. “Why?”

“Because. You’re a good person. I trust why you would want to do this, but you shouldn’t have to be here alone,” she pleaded with her big hazel eyes and Daryl paused for a moment as he continued to walk

“Fine. But you stay out here! Don’t come in, no matter what you hear. Don’t need to be seein that shit,” he grumbled. Dove nodded quickly and pressed her back to the door of the barn as Daryl stepped inside with Randall. It was a quiet night outside and, in the distance, Dove could see Dale walk through the field. She couldn’t blame him for wanting to be away from everyone, hell she had wanted to after everything that went down in the house. But Dove had meant what she’d said to Carol earlier and she wasn’t about to let Daryl carry this alone. 

She was about to peek her head in and ask Daryl what was taking him so long when it happened. A loud scream pierced the quiet night air and Dove jumped a few inches off the ground. Without a second thought, she threw the door to the barn open and peeked her head inside. “Daryl,” her voice came out shrill as panic flooded through her veins. 

“Shit, cmon,” Daryl practically shoved his way past her as they raced in the direction of the scream. 

“Dale,” Dove shouted into the night as she followed Daryl. Another scream echoed through the field just a few seconds before Daryl reached them. Dove slowed to a jog and let out a scream as Daryl tackled the walker off of the old man. It was like time slowed down as Dove dropped to her knees on the ground beside him. “Dale, Dale listen to me.” She tried to keep her voice calm as she took one of his hands in her own shaky ones. “Everything’s gonna be alright. We got you. We’re right here.” Tears stung her eyes as she could feel Daryl drop to the ground next to her.

“Hang in there, buddy. Everyone’s comin,” Dove turned her attention to the redneck and didn’t miss the panic on his face. As everyone else began to crowd around them, Dove was finally able to register the sound she’d missed before. Dale was choking on his own blood. _Blood._ The bottom half of her jeans were warm and so were her hands. Blood was everywhere. Dove let out a weak whimper as Daryl put a hand on her shoulder. “Cmon,” he pulled her quickly to her feet and ushered her closer to her sister. 

It was all too much. Dove began to cry as she took in the sight of all the blood on her hands. A scrap of fabric was shoved into her hands and then Daryl was gone. His hands were replaced by Carol’s as she wrapped her arms around her sister. 

The two of them watched as Daryl stepped forward. Dove had a feeling that someone was going to die tonight, she just didn’t count on it being Dale Horvath. 


	22. Better Angels

Whenever Dove’s eyes drifted closed that night, she would see Dale. If it wasn’t him, then she would see Sophia. She felt like one of the undead herself as she pulled on one of the winter coats they’d found and shuffled off with Carol to the small vigil they were going to hold for the old man.

“Dale could get under your skin. He sure as hell got under mine,” Rick stated, “He wasn’t afraid to say exactly what he thought or how he felt. That kind of honesty is rare and brave.” Dove sucked in a deep breath as she stared at the freshly dug grave. Her hands, balled into fists in her coat pockets, still felt dirty. Would things have been different if she had sided with him? Maybe if there were more people who agreed with him, he wouldn’t have went wandering off on his own. Instead, she stood there feeling more alone than ever.

“We put aside our differences and work together. Stop feeling sorry for ourselves and take control of our lives, our safety, our future. We’re not broken. We’re gonna prove him wrong.” Dove couldn’t help but agree with most of what Rick was saying. The best way to honor Dale was to try and do things the right way. 

It was a few hours before the small group returned in the truck after the funeral. Everyone was beginning to move their things into the house and Dove was grateful to be in out of the cold.

“Gonna be tight, 14 people in one house,” Rick observed. 

“Don’t worry about that,” Hershel shook his head as Dove waved Daryl over towards the tent she shared with Carol.

“Help me take this stupid thing down,” Dove pleaded as the redneck got closer. “Carol’s trying to get our stuff moved up to the house and I got left with this.”

Daryl let out a huff as he stepped over a backpack and began to help disassemble the tent. “You alright?” The voice was so quiet that Dove just stopped before she looked back up at the blue-eyed man.

“Huh,” she tilted her head.

“After last night,” Daryl asked as he continued to pull the tent apart. He was good at avoiding eye contact.

Dove moved to flip the tent on its side before she shrugged her thin shoulders. “Don’t know. I don’t really feel anything right now if I’m being honest. I think that’s normal sometimes though.”

A grunt came from alongside her and she turned her attention to see Daryl tug one of the poles out of the corner of the tent. “Whatcha mean?”

“I mean that sometimes when things…. like that happen, your brain blocks it out. Doesn’t really let you feel anything for a while. Like self-preservation and shit like that. It helps keep you alive,” the brunette brushed her hair out of her face as she reached into the tent. She could feel Daryl’s eyes on her as she pulled her arm back. Hazel eyes narrowed as they locked eyes. “Don’t worry about me. I’m fine. Seriously. I’ll be okay.”

Daryl let out an annoyed huff, “Who said I was worried?”

“You really are a jerk sometimes,” Dove grumbled. “Just make sure you’re careful when you go to dump that kid off in the middle of nowhere.”

Daryl stopped. “It’ll work out this time. If it doesn’t, we’ll handle it. He won’t be comin back this time. Not for you to worry about anyway.”

“Who said I was worried,” Dove lowered her voice slightly and the corner of her mouth twitched up into a small smirk.

* * *

Julian understood the purpose of people patrolling the house, but the thought of it made him feel like a prisoner. The idea of having Shane in the house didn’t make him feel much better. The guy seemed to be getting more and more erratic since he’d gotten back from that run with Otis. 

Julian hoped he wasn’t alone in thinking that Shane had done something to Otis. The whole story just sounded wrong. Otis had done runs before and nothing had ever happened. It was suspicious that things only seemed to happen when Shane came around. Even if Otis did die trying to make sure Carl lived, there was no way he wouldn’t fight to make it back to Patricia. 

He found himself holding the ladder while Daryl hammered in more beams on the barn that Randall was housed in. He wanted to feel useful, especially now that Hershel seemed to be more comfortable with them mingling with each other. The noises Randall was making in the barn, though? That made him want to turn tail and head back to the house. At least they weren’t going to kill him, though.

“You know em,” Daryl called down from the roof.

Julian leaned back to peer up at the roof. “Who? Randall?”

There was no answer.

“I mean not personally. Him and my one friend dated for like…3 days when we were freshman. Nothing other than that really. Wasn’t a bad kid. Guess he just got mixed up with the wrong people,” he stepped to the side as Daryl descended the ladder. “But even that can make people do real bad things.”

“You got that right, kid,” Daryl mumbled under his breath. He gave Julian a quick nod and then he was off towards the house to meet with Rick. Part of Julian wanted to know what exactly Randall had told Daryl about his group. Randall was right inside. He could always just ask him.

Instead, the young man turned and headed back towards the house. Maybe he should check on Hershel instead.

* * *

Dove lowered herself down onto the couch next to Glenn as she saw her friend re-enter the house. “Hey bud,” Dove smiled slightly. She punched the man lightly on the arm. He shook his head.

“You think there’s anything else we could’ve done?” Glenn’s voice was quiet. Dove let out a sigh and held her hand out, palm up. 

Glenn paused, but after a few seconds, he put his hand in hers. Dove linked her fingers with his and gave his hand a tight squeeze. “I don’t think so. Even if we backed him up, the decision was already made. At least I think so.” She pursed her lips and nodded her head slowly. “The important thing is that…we were all there. Dale didn’t die alone. I wish it could’ve been easier. I wish he could’ve gone in his sleep like my grandma did or something but…he wasn’t alone. He died surrounded by people that loved him.”

Glenn sniffled and wiped his eyes with his free hand. “I guess you’re right.”

Dove sucked in a deep breath and blinked away her own tears. “But Rick’s right. Things have to be different now. For Dale. And we’re going to keep living for him.” 

Glenn gave her hand a squeeze.

Dove released his hand and stood up; a hand reached out and patted the top of his hat. “Now, I think you should go talk to Maggie. At least you have someone who’s there for you. Don’t waste it.” She turned her head just to see the other woman enter the room. A bright smile crossed Dove’s face as she stepped through the room. She placed a hand on the other woman’s shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile before she exited.

Dove stepped down off the front porch as T-Dog walked off to get Randall. “Carol already give you guys the food and all that?”

Rick nodded, “she did. Make sure you tell her I said thank you. I know it’s a lot of extra work for her…”

Dove smiled. “I will. But just so you know, Carol always loved that shit. PTA. You know,” she shrugged her shoulders. “I would tell you guys good luck, but I don’t know if you need it,” her gaze flickered over to Daryl who suddenly became very occupied with his gun.

Rick glanced between the two, a confused look on his face. Any response was lost as T-Dog shouted from over by the barn. “Son of a bitch!”

“Back inside,” Daryl pointed towards the house as T ran over towards the two men.

Dove didn’t think twice about it. She still heard what had happened as she closed the door behind her. Randall was gone. 

It was pure chaos as everyone tried to scramble and find out where Randall had gone. Until Shane stumbled his way back to camp. “He’s armed! He took my gun,” Shane shouted as he approached them.

Dove reached out and gripped Carol’s hand in hers.

“T-Dog. Hershel, get everyone else back in the house! Glenn, Daryl, Julian. you’re with us,” Rick shouted, and Hershel began to move without question. 

“Just let him go,” Carol spoke up. “That was the plan, wasn’t it? Just let him go.”

“Carol’s right. That’s what was gonna happen anyway! It’s gonna be dark out soon. It’s not safe,” Dove felt adrenaline start to rush through her.

“The plan was to cut him loose far away from here,” T reasoned. 

“Don’t go out there! You don’t know what could happen,” Carol shouted.

Julian’s hands shook as he was handed a gun by Hershel. 

“Lock all the doors and stay put!” Rick called behind him as they started off into the woods.

Julian glanced over his shoulder as they neared the edge of the woods. He could just see Maggie and Dove turn to head back towards the house behind everyone else. 

* * *

Something wasn’t right. “Kid weighs a buck 25 soaking wet. You trying to tell us he got the jump on you,” Daryl turned back around to face Shane. Julian felt a little bit relieved. He clearly wasn’t the only one who didn’t trust Shane. 

“Knock it off,” Rick raised a hand in between the two men. “Daryl. You take Glenn and Julian. Start heading up the right flank. Me and Shane’ll take left.”

Julian nodded as he stepped forward. “Some trails run through here. Maybe if he really did get the jump on Shane, he took one of them? Headed back towards the highway?” He finally spoke up as they got far enough away from the others. Daryl nodded his head but didn’t look up from the ground. He was trying his best to track the kid, that much was clear.

It got dark out a lot quicker now and he regretted not thinking about bringing a flashlight. Julian’s dark eyes stayed locked on his feet as Glenn handed Daryl his own flashlight. At least one of them had some sense. 

“What if he’s not even out here anymore?” Julian sighed as he turned his head quickly. Had something moved or was he getting paranoid.

“Bit or not. He’s still out here somewhere. Just gotta make sure,” Daryl spoke quietly.

“We’re just back to square one,” Glenn huffed as they circled back.

“You wanna do something, might as well do it right,” Daryl shrugged as he stood up on a fallen tree. “There’s two sets of tracks right here,” Daryl spoke suddenly. Julian felt like his stomach turned. He knew Shane was full of it. “Shane must’ve followed him a lot longer than he said.”

“Why would he just follow him? If he was that close behind him for that long, why wouldn’t he just shoot him,” Julian whispered.

“That’s the real question,” Daryl huffed. “There’s fresh blood on this tree.” He shined the light onto a nearby tree. “More tracks,” Daryl pointed towards the ground again. “Looks like they’re walking in tandem.”

Julian stopped and shared a nervous glance with Glenn. 

“What do you mean,” Glenn asked in a nervous voice. Julian stepped up beside the two men and observed the area bathed in light.

“I mean something went down.”

“It’s getting weird,” Glenn sighed.

Julian nodded. “Super weird. Dude, maybe we should just turn back. This whole thing just seems wrong. There’s no way that Randall overpowered Shane…. right?” All three of them stopped as Glenn leaned down and picked something up. It was Randall’s blindfold. “Holy shit. What the hell happened out here,” Julian whimpered.

A crack behind them made all three of them run off behind a separate tree. Julian’s hands shook as he held the gun tightly in his hand. He couldn’t stop the yell that left his mouth as the light shone on Randall’s undead face. Chaos once again until Glenn took a swing and buried his weapon right in his head. “Nice,” Daryl patted the Asian’s arm. “You alright, kid,” Daryl looked over. Julian still had his gun raised and a panicked look in his eyes.

“I’m good,” the young man’s voice shook as he lowered his weapon. “I couldn’t take the shot. Didn’t want to hit someone,” he explained frantically. Daryl raised a hand. 

“It’s alright.” The young man stepped forward as the other two began to observe the body. 

“What the hell happened to him,” Julian mumbled.

“He got his neck broke,” Daryl grunted as he moved to flip the body over. “He’s got no bites.”

“Yeah. None we can see,” Glenn replied.

Julian shook his head, “Even if he got bit on the leg or somethin, you would still be able to see the blood.”

“He’s right,” Daryl sighed as he stood up. “I’m sayin he died from this.”

“How is that even possible,” Glenn frowned.

“Let’s go,” Daryl grumbled. Julian didn’t question it and instead, hurried to keep up with the older man. Something was very wrong. 

* * *

Dove stared out of the front windows as Maggie paced the front room. Lori chewed nervously on her fingernails.

Carol frowned. “They should be back by now. What if something happened to them?”

“Don’t say that,” Maggie wrung her hands together as she stopped next to the window. “Anything?”

Dove shook her head. “Not yet…”

“I’m going after them,” Andrea finally stood up.

“I’m going with you,” Dove interjected. She might not be the blonde’s biggest fan, but someone had to do something. 

“Don’t. They could be anywhere and if Randall comes back, we’re gonna need you here,” Lori shook her head. 

The door opened and Dove felt her heart jump into her throat. Dove took a step forward as Daryl entered the house with Glenn and Julian trailing after him. Julian stepped forward and wrapped one of his shaking arms around Beth in a quick hug before he lowered himself onto the couch. 

“Rick and Shane ain’t back,” Daryl inquired as he walked through the room. 

“No,” Lori sounded nervous now.

“What the hell happened,” Dove swallowed hard as Daryl stopped right in front of her. 

“We heard a shot.”

“Maybe they found Randall,” Lori suggested.

“We found him,” Daryl replied.

“Is he back in the shed,” Maggie inquired.

“He’s dead,” Julian spoke up from the couch. Dove’s hazel eyes glanced his way until Daryl spoke again. 

“He was a walker when we found him,” Daryl informed them.

“Did you find the walker that bit him,” Hershel spoke up from the corner.

“The weird thing is he wasn’t bit,” Glenn chimed in.

“His neck was broke.” Daryl explained.

Dove felt Carol grip her arm suddenly at the news. Dove’s hazel eyes widened as she tried to wrap her head around it. How could someone turn without being bitten?

“The thing is? Shane and Randall’s tracks were right on top of each other,” Daryl frowned as he spoke.

“So you’re saying they were walking with each other,” Dove asked as she took a step forward.

“Looked like it,” Daryl nodded quickly. “Shane ain’t no tracker. So he didn’t come up behind him. They had to have been together.” 

“Would you please get back out there and find Rick and Shane,” Lori stepped forward in a desperate plea. “Find out what the hell is going on.”

“You got it,” Daryl nodded. A quick glance over his shoulder and Daryl left the room again. 

Dove stood still for a moment before she pulled her coat tighter around herself and followed Daryl’s path out of the house. She felt Carol’s hand try to pull her back as she exited, but Andrea and Glenn followed right behind her. “Holy shit,” Julian uttered as he stepped onto the porch. 

“Maybe they’ll just pass through like the herd on the highway? We might be able to wait it out,” Glenn suggested.

“Not unless there’s a tunnel under the house we don’t know about. A herd that size will tear the whole house apart,” Daryl shook his head. 

“Son of a bitch,” Dove mumbled as Carol stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder.

“Carl’s gone,” Lori cried out as she stepped back onto the porch. “He was supposed to be upstairs but he’s not. I’m not going anywhere without my boy.”

Dove exchanged a look with Carol. Both of them could understand how that felt. Dove nodded her head. “We’re not going anywhere without him,” Carol assured the other woman. “We’re gonna look again. We’re gonna find him!” 

As the other women disappeared back into the house, Dove’s hazel eyes met Daryl’s blue ones. Neither of them had to say anything. Carl wasn’t going to be another Sophia if Carol had anything to say about it. 

“Maggie,” Glenn spoke as he was handed a gun. 

“You grow up country, you learn a thing or two.” Maggie cut him off as she handed Dove a rifle. Dove nodded appreciatively at the other woman as she examined the firearm in her hands. The gun training ran quickly through her mind. 

“With those numbers, it’s no use,” Daryl sighed.

“You can go if you want,” Hershel replied. 

“You gonna take ‘em all on,” Daryl questioned the older man.

“We have guns. We have cars.” Hershel answered as he loaded his gun.

Andrea piped up, “Kill as many as we can and we’ll use the cars to lead the rest of them off the farm.”

“If there’s anything left,” Dove added.

“Are you serious,” Daryl glanced around the porch.

Dove shrugged her shoulders. “Seems like it. I don’t see any better ideas. Plus, all my other plans got cancelled,” she joked as she loaded her rifle. 

“This is my farm,” Hershel nodded. “I’ll die here.”

“All right,” Daryl shrugged. “It’s as good a night as any.” He lowered himself off the porch. Dove felt a hand on her arm start to lead her into the house. She shrugged it off and rushed over to the railing of the porch. Daryl was only a few steps from the edge of the porch as she peered over.

“Please be careful,” she called over to him.

Daryl glanced up from loading his crossbow. The moment seemed to last a lot longer, but he finally nodded his head. “You too.”

Julian’s hand gripped Dove’s shoulder tightly as he pulled her back from the railing. “C’mon. We gotta get back inside. Get ready.” Dove stood and watched as Daryl turned and headed out towards the field before she allowed herself to be led into the house. It was a good night, but she wasn’t ready to give up on living. Not yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case anyone was wondering (though no one asked me) I've always pictured Dove as Phoebe Tonkin or someone similar. Also Julian is 100% Alex Wolff. Thanks for coming to my TED talk.


	23. Beside the Dying Fire

Dove couldn't think straight. How could everything go so wrong so fast? The herd coming towards the house was massive and it didn't seem like there was anything anyone could do to stop it. Julian stood on the porch with her as they watched Andrea, T, Glenn, Maggie, and Daryl tried their best to kill as many as they could. Dove charged back into the house just in time to hear Lori scream, "What do I do!"

"He was here," Carol attempted to calm the other woman down.

Dove stepped forward and put a hand on Lori's shoulder. "Listen! Odds are he found Rick and he's somewhere safe, right?"

"Maybe he set the fire," Patricia interjected.

Gunfire continued to sound from outside. "We have to get some of our shit. Get ready to go," Dove urged the other woman. "Come on, we gotta go." Carol and her sister locked eyes and nodded.

The three of them filed outside as Dove threw a bag over her shoulder. "If we find him, he's gonna need his mother!" Carol pleaded with Lori. "We've gotta go!"

"Get the others," Lori ordered, and Carol ran back inside. Dove's heart raced as Lori began to scream for her son. Dove wasn't exactly comfortable with a gun yet, but it didn't feel as wrong using one as it did the other day. She couldn't use it when Shane had asked her to, but this was different.

"Hershel," Julian yelled over the gunshots. "Come on, we have to go!"

"Come on!" Carol shouted.

Julian paused as the women stared at him. "Go! I'll get Hershel!" His gaze met Beth's panicked one for a moment. "Go! We'll be fine." Without another word, the two brunettes urged the other women off the porch and towards the cars.

Carol ran faster than Dove expected her to. "Wait up," Dove shouted as she ran beside Lori. "Carol! Carol, wait!" Then there was screaming. Dove's heels dug into the gravel as she spun around and ran back towards the youngest Greene girl. Patricia was dying but Beth wouldn't let her go. Lori grabbed Beth's arm and began to pull her away. Dove jumped in alongside her and pulled the girl's other arm. "Beth, no!"

Dove cringed as they finally pulled Beth back. Patricia was gone; being eaten alive right in front of them until instinct kicked back in and they ran.

The blue truck screeched to a stop as Dove heard Carol scream from straight ahead.

She heard Lori tell Andrea to get Carol, but she felt rooted to the spot. A sharp shake brought her back to sense. "Get in the truck! I'll go get Carol." Dove paused another second and didn't feel she had a choice as Andrea ran off in the direction of her sister's screams. The brunette was shoved into the car by Lori who piled in after her with Beth.

"Go!"

"We have to wait for Carol!" Dove shouted over the chaos in the car.

There were more gunshots and she heard T shot something about them having someone before the tires squealed over the gravel and he pulled away.

* * *

Julian pulled Hershel's arm for what felt like the millionth time. "Do you wanna die here?"

"I'll die defending my farm. I thought you understood that," Hershel shouted.

"I know but it's over!" Julian sighed as Hershel seemed to finally understand and begin backing up.

A gunshot sounded behind them and Julian's attention snapped back. "Lori. Did you see her?" Rick yelled over the sound of the roaring fire.

"They just keep coming," was Hershel's only answer.

"I saw her," Julian finally answered Rick. "They were headed towards the cars. Maybe they made it!"

"We have to go," Rick urged the two men. His attention turned to his son. "Find mom and the others."

"It's my farm!"

"Not anymore," Rick screamed back and Julian grabbed Hershel by the arm. There was no way they were going to win this fight. The farm was lost. It was over.

As Julian pulled Hershel into the truck after him, he couldn't help but turn and stare out of the back window with the older man as the barn continued to burn. Julian placed a hand on the old man's arm. "It's gonna be okay, Hershel. Beth made it out. She's probably with Lori."

Hershel didn't say anything as he turned to face out of the windshield. Julian sighed heavily as he allowed his head to fall against the window. All he wanted to do was sleep.

* * *

Dove was going stir-crazy in the car. It was too tight. She felt claustrophobic and the only thing on her mind was whether or not Carol was dead. She pressed herself up against the door as Lori continued to comfort Beth. The blonde girl hadn't stopped whimpering since they'd driven away from the farm. Lori's statement made her realize that they were not going in the right direction.

"Straight back into that herd? Um, no."

"T, we have to go back!" Dove pleaded.

"The highway's back there! That's where they'll be," Lori sounded so sure of herself. It made Dove feel like she wasn't just losing her mind. Carol was still alive and she would see her on the highway. "Rick will go back to where we first broke down. Glenn too." Her stomach turned. Was Glenn alive?

"We're headed East. Get to the coast. We should've done that from the jump."

Dove felt her fingers instinctively grip the gun in her hand a little tighter. She breathed in through her nose and out through her mouth. She didn't really want to have to take drastic measures but pulling a mutiny in the car didn't seem so drastic when she thought about it.

"I gotta find Carl! Maybe he got out with somebody." Lori stated.

"What about Glenn, huh? Or Carol."

"I hate to say it, but they're on their own." The two women exchanged worried looks as T kept driving. "There's no way to even know where to start looking."

"You're wrong," Lori pleaded.

"We can't go back. I'm sorry, it's suicide."

Beth sat up now as T seemed to reach his final decision. Dove could only imagine how she felt with her father and sister still out there somewhere.

"All right then. Let us out."

"What?" Dove yelped as the passenger side door suddenly swung open and T came to a stop.

"You take us back now or you let us out." Lori was a woman on a mission.

"I should do it, you know!"

"T, listen to me. if they're not there, then I'll go with you but we have to make sure!" Dove urged her friend.

"You're out of your damn minds. All of you."

"Just shut up and drive," Dove grumbled as she settled back into the cramped seat.

* * *

Walkers still wandered the highway.

"I don't know how much longer we can stay here," Hershel whispered.

Julian agreed with Carl. He didn't want to leave without knowing if everyone was definitely alive or dead. He'd already lost his sister and wasn't sure he would ever see her again. He wasn't sure if he could do that again with Beth or Maggie.

"How do we live with that?"

"You've only got one concern now. Just one. Keeping him alive."

Julian bounced on his right foot as he considered another option. "Are we sure there isn't another way? Maybe if…maybe if we just wait a little bit longer. What if they ran into roadblocks? Another pile up on the road. They could still be coming!"

Hershel looked solemn as he placed a hand on Julian's shoulder. "Son, there might not be another option at this point. I don't want to leave without them either." An engine revved in the distance and Julian's heart leapt. He wanted to cry as he saw Maggie's car coming down the highway.

In the blue pickup, Dove sat up straighter as she heard the engine rev in front of them. As they crossed between the two sides of the road, she couldn't help but let the tears fall. Carol was alive and on the back of Daryl's motorcycle. Son of a bitch. As they came to a stop, Dove fidgeted as Lori and Beth piled out of the car. The brunette practically threw herself out the door and ran as fast as her feet could carry her. She saw Beth get picked up into a hug by Julian out of the corner of her eye. "Carol!" Dove shouted just before she embraced her sister.

She just about knocked the wind out of herself as she began to cry. Carol stroked the top of her head as she hugged her just as tight. "Oh thank god." Carol's voice cracked.

Dove sniffled as she felt like she was finally able to breathe for the first time in weeks.

The two sisters hugged in silence for a few seconds before Dove pulled away. "So you got to ride a motorcycle, huh?" The two sisters chuckled quietly. Dove gave Carol's shoulder a tight squeeze before she turned. Daryl still stood next to his bike not looking like he wanted to intrude at all. Dove walked forward and, without a word, threw her arms around his neck in a tight hug.

Daryl shot Carol a worried look over the top of the younger woman's head. "Thank you," Dove whispered as she pulled back. "You have no idea how grateful I am. I don't think I could ever repay you for-"

Daryl shook his head. "You don't need to do anything. Just saw her runnin when I was gettin ready to pull away. Couldn't just leave her." Dove thought she heard Carol scoff from behind her.

"I'm sorry." Dove blurted out. Daryl's eyebrows raised. "I was wrong. You're a good man, Daryl Dixon."

A shout behind her made Dove whip around as Glenn closed in and wrapped her in a hug. "Thank God you're alright."

"How'd you find everyone," Rick finally spoke up.

"Saw that guy's tail lights swervin around on the road. Figured he had to be Asian drivin like that," Daryl joked.

Dove chuckled as she pushed the brim of Glenn's hat down in front of his eyes. Glenn snorted. "Good one."

"Where's the rest of us?" Daryl asked.

Rick sighed. "We're the only ones who made it so far."

"Shane?"

A new tension hung in the air at the mention of the deputy. Dove frowned as Rick shook his head. Her eyebrows furrowed and she glanced sideways at her sister. Carol looked just as confused as she felt.

"Andrea?" Glenn spoke up.

"She saved me, then I lost her," Carol shook her head.

"We saw her go down."

"Patricia?"

Beth shook her head. "They got her too. Took her right in front of me. I was…I was holdin onto her, daddy. She just…What about Jimmy? Did you see Jimmy?" Julian's breath caught in his throat as he realized that the younger man wasn't there. He hadn't exactly noticed before.

As Rick explained that the RV got overrun with Jimmy inside, Julian felt the color drain from his face. He began to anxiously run his hands through his hair as the conversation continued.

"You definitely saw Andrea?"

"There were walkers everywhere."

Dove shook her head at Lori's statement. "She still could've made it," Dove interjected. "Saw her fall. Didn't see her get bit." She wasn't Andrea's biggest fan but the idea of someone being ripped to shreds by walkers wasn't a fate she would wish on anyone.

"I'm gonna go back," Daryl insisted before Rick stepped in to stop him. Dove felt a sense of dread in her stomach at the thought of the redneck going back to the farm by himself. "We can't just leave her."

"We don't even know if she's there," Lori shook her head.

Dove sighed. "Maybe…Maybe we stay close? See if Andrea's still around?" She shot a look at Rick. "Up to you, chief."

Rick frowned as her scratched his chin. "Have to think about it. It's an option. Just not today and not alone. We can't risk it with how big that herd was."

Daryl froze, hands still on the handlebars of his bike. He just nodded.

"But we need to consider that Andrea probably isn't there. She's most likely either somewhere else or she's dead."

"So you're saying that we're not even going to look for her?" Glenn looked like he couldn't believe his ears.

"Like I said. The odds that we're going to find her are pretty low. We can try, but it's not something we can afford to spend a lot of time on. It's not safe here," Rick stated. "We have to keep moving. The walkers have been crawling all over here."

"I say head East," T dog spoke up and Dove had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. Why did he seem to think things would be better if they went East? They could end up stuck between a herd and the ocean and then what?

"Stay off the main roads," Daryl added as he reached for his crossbow. "The bigger the road, the more walkers." Dove cringed as she watched Daryl take the walker out with a bolt.

Julian placed a hand on Beth's shoulder as he spoke. "We're gonna need supplies before we head out. There might still be some stuff in town?"

"We can figure that out tomorrow. For now, we have to find somewhere to camp. Come on." Rick motioned for everyone to get back in the cars. Carol gave Dove's shoulder a squeeze as the younger woman walked over to join Lori, Carl, Rick, and T. As she closed the door behind her, Dove caught sight of the painted sigh on the windshield of the car. _Sophia stay here._

* * *

"Damn," Rick slapped the steering wheel. Dove jumped slightly in the backseat at the sudden noise. "We've been riding red for the past hour."

"Better make sure we don't get forgot," T sounded a little panicked as Rick began to honk the horn. Slowly, the convoy came to a stop. Dove was out of the car and making her way up towards her sister before anyone else in the car.

"We can't stay here," Maggie frowned as the others exited their vehicles.

"We can't all fit in one car," Glenn shook his head. Julian glanced around. He was definitely right about that. He thought about one of the cars he'd seen a few miles back on the road but didn't feel like now was the right time.

"We'll have to make a run for some gas in the morning," Rick informed the group.

"Spend the night here?" Carol furrowed her brow as she pulled her cardigan tighter around herself.

"I'm freezing," Carl whined. Dove couldn't agree more as she wrung her hands together in an attempt to keep them from getting too cold.

"We'll build a fire. Yeah?" Lori comforted her son as she wrapped an arm around him.

"If you go out looking for firewood, stay close." Daryl frowned. "I only got so many arrows. How you doing on ammo?"

"Not enough." Rick sounded mad.

"I only got what's left in here," Dove held up the gun she had kept with her this whole time. She still didn't feel too comfortable about using it, but that might be the only reason why she had so many bullets left until now. Maybe it was better that way.

Maggie sighed heavily. "We can't just sit here with our asses hanging out."

"Watch your mouth," Hershel snapped. Julian bit the inside of his cheek to keep a nervous laugh from escaping. "Everyone stop panicking and listen to Rick."

"We'll set up a perimeter. In the morning, we'll find gas and some supplies." At least someone had their wits about them enough to make some sort of sense. "We'll keep pushing on."

"Glenn and I can go make a run now, try and scrounge up some gas."

"No, we stay together! God forbid something happens and people get stranded without a car."

"Rick, we're stranded now." Glenn glanced around as he began to pace slowly. Dove leaned against the guide rail close by her friend and shook her head.

"Glenn's right. We're already down gas in one car. What happens when everything else runs out. What if another herd comes by in the morning and we get stuck because we don't have any gas." Dove folded her arms in front of her chest.

"Enough! Now that's not going to happen. We're far enough away that we should be safe. I know it looks bad. We've all been through hell and worse," the leader's eyes lingered on Dove and then on Carol for a moment before he continued. "but at least we found each other. I wasn't sure. I really wasn't! But we did. We're together. We keep it that way." Dove let out a quiet huff as Carol sat beside her. "We'll find shelter somewhere. There's gotta be a place."

"There's probably plenty of clearings around here we can camp at. Depends if you want cover or not," Julian shrugged.

"Nah, deeper in the woods might be more dangerous." Daryl shook his head. "Probably be better off closer to the road. That way whoever's on watch can see if anything's comin. Give us time to move out."

Glenn shot Dove a concerned look before he stepped forward. "Rick, look around. Ok? There's walkers everywhere. They're migrating or something."

Rick didn't seem to want to hear it. "There's gotta be a place. Not just where we hole up, but that we fortify, hunker down. Pull ourselves together, build a life with each other." Dove's dark gaze flickered towards Daryl for a moment before her concentration focused back on her hands folded in her lap. "I know it's out there. We just have to find it."

Rick was starting to sound more and more frustrated by the moment. Dove couldn't necessarily blame him; they'd been through a lot in the past few weeks. Enough trauma and death to last anyone a lifetime a few years ago and it had happened in such a short span of time. It was enough to drive anyone to the breaking point. She couldn't imagine what it could do to someone who was trying to ensure the safety of other people on top of it.

"Even if we do find a place and we think it's safe, we can never be sure. For how long? Look what happened with the farm. We fooled ourselves into thinking that was safe." Maggie's voice shook slightly as she spoke. Julian stepped closer to Beth as Hershel faced the rest of the group.

"We won't make that mistake again."

Julian ran a hand through his hair. "How do we know that for sure? I mean, I would love for it to happen but there's a lot of things out there. A lot more dangerous things now and even before this, a lot of places weren't safe. What are we supposed to do?"

Rick looked angry as he turned to face a small patch of land. "We make camp tonight over there. Get on the road at the break of day."

Dove slowly rose to her feet as Carol stepped forward and leaned in close to Daryl. "Does this feel right to you?"

"What if walkers come through or another group like Randall's?" Beth piped up. Julian's stomach turned at the thought of it.

There was silence for a few seconds before Daryl spoke up. "You know I found Randall, right?" Dove felt a shiver run down her spine as the color seemed to drain from Julian's face. "He turned but he wasn't bit."

Rick paused before he turned his gaze away from the group. Dove took another slow step forward and moved closer to where Daryl stood.

"How's that possible?"

"Rick, what the hell happened?"

Julian felt his hands start to shake as Dove spoke. "How can something like that even happen?"

"Shane killed Randall," Daryl stated. It wasn't a question. It was a fact. "Just like he always wanted to."

"And then the herd got him?"

Something was wrong. Rick wasn't answering and that wasn't the way he usually was. Rick always tried to have an answer and the fact that he didn't have one made Dove feel uneasy.

"We're all infected."

Julian's eyes went wide. Dove felt her mouth go dry and her knees went weak for a moment. Instinctively, she reached her hand out and gripped Daryl's arm tightly for stability. "What?"

"At the C.D.C. Jenner told me. Whatever it is, we all carry it." Dove let out a shaky breath as she turned and locked eyes with Carol. How was something like that even possible? None of them were sick. None of them acted like they were infected or dropped dead like when someone got bit.

Daryl stared straight ahead at Rick for a moment before he turned on his heel and began to walk away. Dove felt sick. She couldn't look at Rick at that moment. How could he keep something like that from them? The brunette lowered herself onto the guide rail once again as it felt like her whole body began to shake.

"And you didn't say anything?"

"Would it have made a difference?"

"You knew this whole time?"

"How could I have known for sure?" Rick shot back quickly. Julian felt angry. If they had all tested positive for it in the C.D.C, wasn't that all that Rick needed to know? Why would that doctor lie to him about everyone in his group having this virus?

"That was not your call," Glenn snapped suddenly, and Dove buried her face in her hands. "Ok, when I found out about the walkers in the barn, I told! For the good of everyone."

Rick shook his head. "I thought it was best that people didn't know."

Dove frowned as she raised her head. "That wasn't your choice to make though, Rick! I mean sure I get it. People find out they're sick and panic. But was it really the right choice? I mean Lori is _pregnant_ for Christ's sake!"

Rick just stared at her. As the man turned and walked away towards camp, Dove hopped off the edge of the guide rail. "Where are you goin," Daryl called after her.

"To get firewood." Dove grumbled. She didn't want to be around anyone right now. She didn't feel like she could look Carol in the eye again after everything they'd been through. All she could think about was the walkers and how, sooner or later, she would meet the same fate as those poor people.


	24. Heavy

Dove wandered back to the campsite within a few minutes, arms full with twigs and sticks she'd found on her walk. She hadn't intended to grab anything, but she figured she might as well do something useful. The young woman nodded in greeting to the Asian man as she stepped up beside him.

"You alright? You walked off pretty quick," Glenn squinted in the sunlight.

Dove sighed as she leaned down and placed the pile in front of him. "Do I look alright?"

Glenn nodded weakly. "Good point." He reached out and placed a comforting hand on her arm. "Listen, we're gonna be okay. Right? We've been through worse. We'll get through this."

She wanted to scream that it didn't matter anymore. They were all going to end up like those things one day but she didn't have it in her anymore. Even as Carol sat down next to her as the sun started to sink below the horizon, she just allowed herself to stare into the fire.

"We're not safe from him," Carol whispered. Dove turned her head quickly; eyes narrowed as she surveyed her older sister. "Keeping something like that from us."

"Carol-"

"Why do you need him?" Dove turned her head and looked at Daryl. He looked concerned and a bit confused. "He's just gonna pull you down."

"No," Daryl shook his head. "Rick's done alright by me." Dove relaxed a little as the man settled down to sit next to her.

"He's right. Rick's kept us safe better than Shane ever did. I'm not happy about it, but he thought he was doin the right thing keepin it from us." Dove lowered her voice to a whisper as she noticed Lori glance over in their direction.

"You're his henchman, Daryl." Carol frowned. "And I'm a burden. You deserve better." She agreed with Carol on that one. Dove knew she had been sorely mistaken about Daryl. He was definitely still rough around the edges, but maybe time away from his brother was all he needed for his true colors to come through. He'd done more for them than almost everyone in their group now. Aside from maybe Rick and Glenn.

"What do you want?" Daryl squinted at the short haired woman.

"A man of honor," Carol replied. Dove huffed.

"Rick has honor." Daryl was definitely loyal, Dove had to respect that.

"I think we should take our chances," Maggie spoke up.

Julian sat up straighter. "Are you kidding me?"

"Don't be foolish. There's no food, no fuel, no ammo."

Branches snapped in the distance. Julian inched closer to Hershel and Beth. Part of him felt ashamed for almost cowering like a little kid but who could really blame him after the past few hours.

"What was that?"

"Could be anything," Daryl stated as he rose to his feet. "Could be a raccoon, could be a possum." Dove felt her grip tighten instinctively around the handle of her gun as he spoke.

"Not helping," she hissed across the fire as Glenn mentioned the walkers.

Carol began to panic. "We need to leave. What are we waiting for?"

"It came from over there," Maggie pointed into the woods.

Rick shook his head. "Last thing we need is for everyone to be running off in the dark. We don't have the vehicles. No one's traveling on foot."

"Don't panic," Hershel urged everyone.

"I'm not sitting here and waiting for another herd to blow through," Maggie scowled.

Julian fidgeted. "Do you really think another herd would blow through? I mean that was a lot of walkers back there. Would there even be enough out here to be a herd? If it's just a couple-"

"We need to move, now."

Rick seemed to finally snap. "No one is going anywhere."

"Do something," Carol hissed.

"I am doing something!" Dove flinched back slightly at the anger in Rick's voice. "I'm keeping this group together! Alive. I've been doing that all along, no matter what. I didn't ask for this!" Rick almost shouted. Dove felt her stomach drop. "I killed my best friend for you people, for christ's sake!"

Dove's hand flew up to cover her mouth as she took a step backwards. She knew it was strange that Shane hadn't shown back up but she figured that he'd gotten caught in the herd. Maybe run off by himself like he seemed to want to do for a while. Julian felt Beth grip his arm tight. He was still trying to process how he was feeling. What scared him most was that he didn't feel particularly sad.

"You saw what he was like. How he pushed me, how he compromised us, how he threatened us," Rick began to rant. "He staged the whole Randall thing, led me out to put a bullet in my back."

"Oh my god," Dove mumbled. She knew that Shane teetered on instability, but she had no idea it was that bad.

"He gave me no choice! He was my friend, but he came after me." Carol glanced over her shoulder and caught Dove's eye. Her hazel eyes were wide with a mix of fright and disbelief as she inched back closer to Daryl as Rick continued to go on.

"My hands are clean. Maybe you people are better off without me. Go ahead. I say there's a place for us, but maybe. Maybe it's just another pipe dream." Rick shook his head. "Maybe I'm fooling myself again. Why don't you-why don't you go and find out for yourself? Send me a postcard." Dove turned to look away from the man as she blinked back tears. A hand settled on her shoulder as Rick continued to urge the group to leave if they wanted to.

Silence settled around the group.

"No takers? Fine. But get one thing straight-You're staying, this isn't a democracy anymore."

Julian stared with wide eyes as everyone seemed to soak in what had just happened. He stepped forward and placed a comforting arm around Beth as the girl sniffled. Dove wiped at her eyes frantically as tears started to pour from her eyes.

It didn't seem like sleep was going to come easy to anyone that night as the group continued to sit around the fire for what felt like hours after Rick had disappeared behind the wall. He probably wasn't far and maybe that's what everyone was nervous about.

Her hazel eyes drifted shut as she settled down with her back against the brick wall that somewhat shielded them from sight. She felt Carol sit down next to her and place a hand on top of hers. Dove opened her eyes slowly as she linked her fingers with her sister.

"Do you think we should have left a while ago? Maybe if I would have listened to you-"

"Carol. Stop." Dove rolled her shoulders back as Carol turned to face her. "Better or worse, we're right where we're supposed to be."

The older woman scoffed. "I find that hard to believe right now. How can everything that we've been through be something that we were meant to go through?"

"Sometimes the universe puts horrible things in your path to make you stronger."

"Your mom?"

"I think it's safe for you to assume that anything philosophical I same came from my mother, Carol." The corner of Dove's mouth twitched up into a smile. "I mean it, though."

"What about Rick?"

"Rick…Rick has been through a lot too. I think we need to give him the benefit of the doubt. Shane was dangerous. He showed us that back at the barn. It was just a matter of time."

Carol furrowed her brow. "He basically just declared himself dictator."

"I'm not saying it was the right thing to do but think about it. Look at how Shane acted when he tried to be reasonable and allowed democracy. Can you blame him?"

Carol didn't answer.

"Besides. You were right." Carol quirked an eyebrow. "Daryl is a man of honor too. If Rick gets out of line, I can still see him trying to keep Rick in check. Everything's gonna work out. Maybe Rick's right. Maybe we'll find a place."

"I hope you're right." Carol shook her head.

"Get some sleep, Carol. We'll need it. I have a feeling that tomorrow's gonna be a long day."

* * *

Dove still wiped the sleep from her eyes as she stood around the car with everyone else. When Rick said they were heading out at first light to get supplies, he meant it. Not that it matters any since no one seemed to have much luck with sleep last night from the tired looks on everyone's faces.

"Me and Maggie can go and try to get some gas off of some of the cars on the freeway," Glenn offered.

"Head into town and see if any of the cars there have anything left in them," Maggie added.

Rick shook his head, "That sounds like a good idea but I'm not sure how I feel about sendin you two on your own with one car. That sounds dangerous."

"I'll follow 'em on the bike," Daryl spoke up.

"Me too," Dove tapped her fingers on the hood of the car. Her cheeks went pink as most of the attention shifted to her. "I mean as long as it's alright. I wanna help out as much as I can." Carol squinted at her sister as she tried to gauge where she was coming from.

Daryl nodded his head. Rick took another moment before he answered. "Alright. You two go ahead on the bike. Make sure you stay within sight of each other! Our main focus should be getting gas for the vehicles. If you make it into town, see if you can split up and find supplies. Otherwise, you stay together. No one goes off on their own. Everyone carries a weapon. Only shout if you need help." The four of them nodded.

"Aye aye, captain," Dove mumbled as she pulled her backpack over her shoulder. "I'll be back," she smiled reassuringly at Carol. "Don't worry about me. Trust me," she held her pinky finger out.

The short haired woman eyed her for a moment before she linked her own pinky finger with Dove's. "I trust you but it's not you I'm worried about."

"Just pray. Someone has to be listening," Dove shrugged her shoulders.

"I hope you're right."

"You ready," Daryl called over as he settled down onto his motorcycle. Glenn was already behind the wheel of Maggie's car with her in the passenger seat. Dove nodded as she moved to pull her dark hair back into a ponytail.

"Don't worry about me, Carol. I'll be fine. Back before you know it!" Dove called over her shoulder. Her hazel eyes narrowed slightly as she approached the motorcycle. She wanted to do her part, but part of her didn't feel so confident about going into town after the last few days.

"Come on. We don't wanna lose any light." Daryl's voice was quiet and calm with enough authority behind it to get Dove moving. The woman sighed as she swung her leg over the bike and settled down behind him. "Hold on. Don't want ya fallin off."

Dove rolled her eyes as she wrapped her arms lightly around his waist. "Ready when you are."

The car behind them beeped loudly and Daryl slowly came to a stop in the middle of the road. They were nowhere close to the freeway yet, but there were a few cars scattered around them now. Better to start looking now than to wait any longer.

Glenn hopped out of the car and went around to the trunk. Dove wrinkled her nose and brushed her hair out of her face as she hopped off of Daryl's bike. The brunette walked around the car and leaned against it as she observed the few empty gas cans in the trunk. "So what's the plan," she drummed her finger on the side of the car.

"Take a can. Try to get as much out of each car as you can. We're gonna need as much as we can get if we want to keep moving." Glenn handed her one of the red gas containers. "Just be careful."

"Once we can get more gas in the car," Maggie continued, "we can get movin back to town. Get the supplies and more gas if we think we'll need it. We're gonna need more weapons and more bullets if we can find any too."

Dove nodded as she wrapped her fingers around the handle of the container. A green car parked off the shoulder caught her attention and she nodded over towards it. Before anyone could say anything, she grabbed a hose from the back of the trunk and marched off towards the car.

Daryl followed close behind her, crossbow at the ready for any danger that might come their way. Dove reached through the open window of the car and hit the unlock button. She managed to find the switch to open the gas tank quick enough and she motioned for Daryl to open the lid. She flicked her hair back over her shoulder as she made her way around the car. Her nose wrinkled as she kneeled beside the car and placed the hose into the hole of the gas tank.

"Want me to get it?"

"Nah I got this. Besides, you're a way better shot than me." Dove sucked in a deep breath as she stared at the hose like it was going to bite her. "Here goes nothing." The brunette pressed the hose to her lips and sucked in a breath as hard as she could. Within a few seconds, she pulled the hose from her mouth with a cough. Her hands shook as she inserted the hose into opening of the gas container. Daryl raised an eyebrow as he faced her. She sputtered as she rose to her feet and spat on the ground. "Fucking gross."

The two of them stood in silence as the gas continued to flow through the hose and into the container. Dove squatted back down after a few minutes and pulled the hose from the container and the car. The gas container felt about halfway full at that point. "I think about a gallon for each of us so far. Hopefully, we'll find more cars too?"

"Nice goin, bird." Daryl nodded quickly as he started back towards the other two. "Any luck, Glenn?" Dove peered around the man as she approached. Glenn shook his head.

"I mean we got gas, but just a little bit. Not sure if it's enough."

"Let's load the car up with most of this and we can put some in the bike too." Dove grunted as she set the container down in the trunk of the car.

"You better hurry up. We got company," Daryl whispered as he nodded down the road. There weren't many of them, but walkers were definitely starting to come out now.

"Son of a bitch." Maggie stepped forward and began to gas up the car as quick as she could.

All Dove could think about was how she hoped she would get back to Carol soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is on the shorter side but the past few weeks have been wild. I'm going to continue to try and update at least once a week. It should be easier especially with NANOWRIMO ending soon! Thank you again to anyone who has followed and favorited this story! It truly means a lot!


	25. Somewhere

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello friends, I know this is short but consider this a bridge into season 3! I'm so excited to bring Aspen into this and I hope you all enjoy/love to hate her. Comments are appreciated!

_Two months later_

Dove rubbed her hands together as she followed closely behind her companion. "God, I don't know how the fuck you do this all the time," she grumbled as she pulled her mittens out of her pockets. The rabbits strung up and hung over her shoulder weren't helping much.

"If Lori didn't eat so much, I wouldn't need to be doin this _all the time_ ," Daryl hissed back at her. They both knew she couldn't help it but that didn't make it any less true.

The past two months had been tiresome. They didn't stay in one place for more than a week. Not after what had happened at the farm. The town hadn't been much better, but at least they'd managed to scrounge up some canned food. That was all gone now though. They usually only spent enough time somewhere to gather supplies or, in this case, allow Daryl to get them enough meat to last them to the next place they were going. Wherever the hell that was.

"You didn't have to come if you're gonna complain about the cold the whole time," he stood with another trapped rabbit and added it to his own load. Dove narrowed her dark eyes at him.

"Who else is gonna hold your flashlight for you," she smiled bitterly. Daryl rolled his eyes.

"When it gets warmer, maybe I'll teach you to hunt. Maybe."

"No thanks, I would rather leave the shooting of innocent animals to the professionals," Dove patted him on the shoulder as the two of them started to walk again.

If you would have told her a few months ago that Daryl would be one of the kindest people in the group, she would have laughed in your face. Now, he provided just as much for the group as Rick and Glenn did which was saying a lot. More importantly, he provided Carol with some well needed friendship and had even had a listening ear on a particularly bad day for Dove. She hadn't missed how he slipped Lori extra pieces of meat or how he tried to be understanding with Carl either. It was almost endearing.

Dove sighed as they stopped at another trap. Her eyes drifted closed as she heard the now familiar coo of a mourning dove somewhere in the woods. "We should be heading back," she whispered as she opened her eyes again. "It's gonna be bright enough soon for Rick to want to head out."

She was right. Daryl nodded silently as he stood with his final rabbit. "Should be enough to last us a few days."

"Unless Lori's unborn child decides to get more ravenous, we should be solid." Dove smirked as she spared one last glance towards the horizon and the bright orange and purple sunrise. Daryl's hand brushed against her arm gently as he started to lead her back to camp.

She just wanted them to be able to find that place that Rick had talked about what seemed like years ago now. For Carl. For Lori and the baby. For all of them.

_Elsewhere_

A loud noise made the woman open her eyes quickly. Her dark eyes squinted against bright florescent lights as she groaned in annoyance. _Lights_. Where the hell was she? She didn't have time to think as the door to the room opened. Instinct took over and her hand shot to her waist, but she swore when she realized her knife was gone. A person hurried away from her bedside. It had been the clatter of a stethoscope that had woken her up after all.

"Easy there," a pleasant voice laughed from the doorway. Aspen's attention shifted towards the doorway. Who the fuck dressed like that with the world ending? He looked like he was about to stand in front of a group of people and start preaching about how he was some kind of savior. "We took your knife on account of us not wanting you to wake up and start swinging. It seems we were right." He laughed heartily. Aspen stared over his shoulder at the man behind him.

"Seems pretty ungrateful to me," the older man grumbled from the hallway.

"Where the hell am I," Aspen growled through gritted teeth as her eyes flickered around the room like a caged animal. The last thing she remembered was she was out in the woods. It was cold. So cold. She was alone for the first time in a long time. She had heard noises in the woods around her and instead of fighting, she had sat down on the ground under a tree and was ready. Aspen had been ready to die.

Just her luck, she'd been picked up by Jim fucking Jones and his red neck looking sidekick.

Jim fucking Jones spoke up once again, "Let's start with names, shall we?" Something about his tone made her gaze lock on him. "Mine is Philip. Philip Blake. This is my town." _Called it_. "Now you."

She sucked in a deep breath as she lowered her feet to the floor and stood. Hesitantly, she stepped closer and held out her hand. "Aspen." He didn't earn her last name. Not yet anyway.

She learned quickly that the other man was named Merle. He had been picked up half dead on the side of the road much like herself, but that was the only thing they had in common.

"You Spanish or what," Merle grunted as he handed her knife back.

Aspen scoffed, "Excuse me?"

"You deaf too?"

Her gaze shifted to Philip. "He always this big of a prick or what," she rolled her eyes as she placed her knife back into its sheath.

Phillip's silence was answer enough for her.

"Algerian. You a cousin fucker?" Aspen shot back to Merle. She could see the internal struggle between anger and amusement at her retaliation. The winner of the battle wasn't something she got to see as Phillip placed a hand on her shoulder and pointed her towards the door.

"How about a tour of your new home?"

She didn't know what the hell she expected, but it sure as hell wasn't what she saw when they exited the small infirmary building. Her jaw dropped and she almost didn't hear him when he said

" _ **Welcome to Woodbury.**_ "


	26. Dirty

_One month later_

It seemed like the tension between everyone grew more thick every day. Rick seemed more distant, Lori was emotional, and Glenn was on edge. Dove was on edge lately and Carol didn’t miss it for a second. “What’s wrong,” Carol lowered herself onto the hood of the car next to her sister.

Dove shrugged her shoulders as she flicked her lighter to life to light her cigarette. She took a long drag from her cigarette before she finally answered. “Something’s going on with Rick and Lori. I just don’t know what it is. It’s fucking with everyone, can’t you see it?”

Carol sighed as she wrapped an arm around the brunette’s shoulders. “Of course I can see it. I just think that it’s something they need to work out on their own. Lori hasn’t said much about it.” She hadn’t said much to Dove either. Most of their conversations were around Lori being worried about the baby nowadays. Not that she could blame her.

“Think I should say something about it on the run?” Dove took another drag from her cigarette. Her hazel eyes drifted from the married couple to where Daryl stood with Julian as they prepped for the run. Glenn had chosen to stay behind with Maggie under the guise of keeping an eye on camp with T-Dog. It wasn’t like everyone didn’t know that, but Julian had begun to pull his weight more around camp and had jumped at the opportunity. 

“Not unless someone brings it up,” Carol advised in a quiet voice. “You don’t want Rick getting distracted. He’s been doing better than I expected and I would have to kill him if he came back without you.”

Dove snorted as she took a final drag of her cigarette. Carol had been getting better with handling a gun in the past few months. “Whatever, Rambo. You’re right. Wouldn’t want to throw anyone off their game.” She sighed heavily as she snuffed out her cigarette on the hood of the car before she tossed it to the ground. Her boots snuffed out the rest as she hopped off of the car followed by her sister. Dove sighed as she zipped her coat closed and pulled her hat back onto her head. 

“You ready over there,” Daryl called over and Julian could barely hide the excitement on his face anymore. 

Dove felt like a kid being dropped off for a field trip as Carol followed her to the car. 

“Make sure she gets back in one piece,” Carol eyed Daryl carefully before the man nodded. 

“Do my best.” Carol seemed to accept it as she hugged Dove one last time and cast a fleeting judgmental glance at Rick as she walked over to join Beth and T-Dog by the fire.

Julian smirked as he zipped up his backpack. “You think that she’ll kill someone if she thinks you got hurt?”

“I think she’d kick my ass if I come back with a broken nail,” Dove whispered as she tossed Daryl an extra flashlight. 

“How are we lookin over here?” It didn’t take an expert to see that Rick was on edge. His eyes looked a little more wild than usual and one look over at Lori showed she was trying to hide her own distress.

Daryl broke the silence as he slammed the trunk on their newly acquired vehicle shut. “Ready when you are.”

“Shotgun,” Julian shouted.

“Yeah, I don’t think so.” Daryl rolled his eyes as he nudged past him to the front passenger door.

“Better luck next time, sweetie,” Dove cooed at the younger man as she opened the back door for him. 

She could almost feel the electricity in the air as they pulled away from the campsite and began to drive towards town.

* * *

The new world called for new expectations with going into town and the need to leave the car about a half a mile away from your destination was among them. Julian practically bounced down the road with excitement at his first official venture away from the very watchful eyes of Hershel in months. Dove couldn’t stop the small chuckle that slipped from her lips as she eyed her surroundings from a few yards back.

“You would think he’s on his way to a rollercoaster or somethin actin like that,” Daryl stated as he walked up alongside her, his crossbow already in his hands.

“Don’t be mean, Daryl. He’s just a kid.” Dove rolled her eyes. “If he wants to be excited about something, just let him.”

“He better not get anyone hurt.”

Dove stopped in her tracks and narrowed her eyes slightly. “He won’t. I’ll keep an eye on him.” If Daryl was about to say something, he stopped as Dove fell back into step next to him. 

The rest of the walk was quiet as they approached what used to be a strip mall with a dollar store, a K-Mart, and a convenience store across from it. Rick had decided to hit the biggest store first. There was a better chance of finding something in there. 

“Julian. You and Daryl will-“

“I’ll go with Julian,” Dove piped up as she peered through the front window of the store. She could see something moving inside; there were definitely walkers in there somewhere. Daryl’s blue eyes narrowed as Rick continued.

“Alright…Julian. You and Dove take the right. Me and Daryl will take the left. Work from the outside and move in. We’ll meet you in the middle. Be quick. Be quiet.”

“Keep an eye on each other,” Julian finished his thought.

The glass cracked under her boot as Dove stepped into the store behind the younger man. “Jesus,” she mumbled under her breath. “People really fucking tore this place up, huh.”

“Doesn’t surprise me,” Julian whispered. “People were acting totally crazy on the freeway when everything went down. I’m more surprised that there’s anything here.”

There was silence for a few moments aside from the quiet sound as the scavengers shuffled things around on the shelves as they looked for supplies. The beam of Dove’s flashlight settled on a box of diapers as she turned around. She knew they didn’t need them yet, but she just wanted to look. Without a word, she slowly crossed the aisle but before she could settle her hand on the box, a hand wrapped around her ankle.

Dove shrieked as the grip on her ankle tightened and pulled her forward. “Julian!” She shouted. The young man turned around just as the thing on the other side of the shelving let out a loud groan as it tried to tug her under again. How could something dead be so strong. She could feel the pressure of its bony fingers on her boot as it tightened around her ankle. Julian grabbed her arm as she hit the shelving. She could hear the footsteps of Rick and Daryl as they pounded on the linoleum floor.

Another loud groan and Julian cursed loudly as he tugged her back from the shelf. Just in time too as another walker stuck it’s bony arm through. Dove leaned back as the fingers flexed a few inches from her face. The sound of a cross bow filled the room and a squishing sound filled the empty store.

Julian helped Dove regain her balance as the two older men rounded the corner. “What the hell happened here,” Rick hissed through gritted teeth.

“I-I went to get something off the shelf and it grabbed me. I didn’t see-“

“You had to scream the whole store down,” Daryl snapped quietly as the sound of footsteps began to grow closer.

“Come on, we have to go.”

Dove stared as Daryl retreated to the front of the store with Rick close behind. It was only when Julian grabbed her arm that she shook off her nerves and followed.

* * *

As the car neared, Daryl rounded on his heel and Dove stopped in her tracks. “What the hell was that back there?”

“Daryl, you gotta calm-“ Julian started.

“No, you don’t tell me what I gotta do. You could’ve gotten all of us killed,” Daryl snapped.

Dove blinked quickly as she felt tears threaten to fall. “I didn’t mean to! How was I supposed to know-“

“You’re supposed to keep your god damn eyes open and pay attention!” Daryl shouted.

“Stop it,” Rick stepped in between the two. “We’re still not too far from the store. If all those walkers hear us, we’re screwed. We can talk about this later.”

“There’s nothin’ to talk about,” Daryl scoffed as he pointed a finger in Dove’s face. “You’re done goin on runs. You’re not getting someone killed out here.” The three of them could only stare as Daryl turned and stomped off towards the car.

“Jesus christ,” Julian broke the silence. “What a-“

“He’s right,” Dove sniffled as she held her head up high. “I was stupid. I could’ve gotten someone killed. I should stay back at camp next time. I can’t do that to Carol.”

Rick shook his head as he followed her back to the car. Julian knew there was nothing else to say but he wished there was. Instead of the normally nervous but bright atmosphere in the car, it was dead silent. No one said a word as they all seemed to stare out of the window. Dove didn’t even say anything when they got back to camp. All she did was drop her pack full of supplies by the fire before she shuffled off to the tent she shared with Carol. Julian caught sight of her puffy, red eyes before she zipped the flap to the little tent shut.


	27. Soul

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I am the queen of inconsistency but here is another chapter friends

_One month later_

Aspen wouldn’t want to say that she was ungrateful about being brought into Woodbury. Hell, she knew she could be doing a lot worse; somedays she just wished they had left her on the side of the road to die like she wanted to in the first place. With company like Merle Dixon and Milton, who needed the voices in their head anyway.

“Can’t you just fucking leave him alone already, old man.” Aspen snapped from her perch on the table as she watched Merle continue to berate the spectacled man. Milton wasn’t exactly her cup of tea but that didn’t mean she could just sit there and listen to Merle Dixon of all people talk shit to him.

She didn’t know how old Merle was, but he was older than her and that’s all that counted for her. “What are you gonna do about it?”

Aspen rolled her eyes. “I think the question is what are you gonna do about it? Attack an unarmed woman with your sword arm? Oh I’m so scared,” she made herself tremble before she flipped him the finger.

“Now that’s enough! All of you,” Phillip snapped as he walked into the room and shut the door behind him. She was used to all of this by now. “You can’t even stay in a room together for 5 minutes to hear something important.”

It felt like being scolded by a teacher that you hated anyway. Not even a parent, she wouldn’t give the man that much respect. Merle shifted uncomfortable as his somewhat nervous gaze settled on the younger woman. The one thing they seemed to agree on was that they were grateful for shelter but didn’t exactly trust the governor. Never trust a man who gave himself a title like that.

“Can you just tell us what it is? Not sure I can spend much more time with doc today,” Merle narrowed his eyes.

“The feeling is mutual,” Aspen heard Milton mumble from beside her.

Phillip had decided to spring an idea on them all. Milton didn’t seem to enjoy it too much and Aspen didn’t know how to feel. Merle, on the other hand, seemed over the moon about the thought of being able to kill walkers again.

Aspen fell into step with Merle as she hurried out of the small medical building that Milton occupied for his ‘work’. She pulled her cardigan tighter around herself as she shivered against the cold December night. “What the fuck was that all about?”

“A good way for us to get all of our aggression out if you ask me,” Merle grunted as his eyes seemed to sweep the surroundings as they walked. “Didn’t think you would side with the doc on this.”

“Didn’t think you would want to sign up to be a gladiator. You know some of them were practically prisoners being made to fight, right? This isn’t some glamorous shit, old man.” As much as she didn’t like his racist jokes or the way he treated people like Milton, that didn’t mean she wanted the man to die either. Especially not for some scheme brought up by the Governor of all people.

“No one makes me do anything,” Merle snapped as the two of them rounded a corner. It was unsettling how quiet it seemed to be as the sun went down. Like everyone went into hiding. “Thought you would want to kill those filthy disease-ridden son-of-bitches, too.”

“I _do_ ,” Aspen rolled her dark eyes as she hopped up on the curb. “Just not for him. He doesn’t deserve shit from me,” she hissed through gritted teeth.

“You’d be dead if it wasn’t for him.” Merle said in a way that sounded almost rehearsed.

“Keep telling yourself that while he makes you his bitch.” Aspen snapped back quietly as she watched another one of the citizens of Woodbury pass on the other side of the sidewalk. “Killing walkers is fine out there but why do it in here if we’re supposed to be safe?”

“I’m nobody’s bitch,” Merle’s tone grew dark and Aspen thought for just a second that he might bring his sword hand right across her throat and just end it all in the street. Good. She almost ran right into him as he stopped in front of her. “Now shut up and don’t tell nobody what he told us in there, ya hear me? Don’t need no one actin crazy about it.”

They both knew there was probably nothing they could say to get Phillip to rethink the idea of a gladiator pit for walkers anyway.

“You wanna pinky promise,” Aspen pouted playfully for a moment before she rolled her eyes and turned her head to realize she was in front of the building she’d taken up residence in. “I’ll be quiet about it. But only because you asked _so nicely.”_

_Elsewhere in Georgia_

Dove hadn’t been able to bring herself to speak to Daryl since the incident at the K-Mart. Tensions in the group only seemed to grow higher as it got colder outside. They didn’t have anything close to a calendar, but by her estimations it had to be somewhere in the middle of December. The cold helped with being able to tell as much as she hated it.

She knew tensions were tough when even Carl seemed to be acting a little more distant from almost everyone except his mother and Beth. Dove had even grown a little distant from Carol, but only because Carol had seemed to get a little more comfortable with him. The brunette woman felt like she couldn’t talk to her about how she felt when Daryl had snapped at her and, instead, she found herself venting to Beth as she fixed the younger woman’s hair while they waited for the men to return from another run. T-Dog had taken her spot on the run team without much of a fight from either of them.

“So Daryl was a jerk to you and you’re going to keep not talking to him,” Beth mused as Maggie cracked a small smile from across the fire.

“When you put it like that it sounds stupid,” Dove mumbled. She knew it wasn’t exactly the best way to go about things, but it wasn’t like she wanted to cause more problems around camp.

“You should talk to him,” Maggie offered as advice.

Beth rolled her eyes at her sister. “Have you ever tried to talk to Daryl?”

“You seem to have no problem getting him to talk,” Dove teased as she wrapped the ponytail holder around one last time.

Maggie let out a snort of laughter. “Beth could get someone with a vow of silence to talk if she really wanted to.”

“It’s called persistence,” Beth held her head up high. “Besides, I don’t think you’d want me to talk to him for you! I might mention something embarrassing.”

Dove gave the woman a playful shove forward. “Alright! Shit. Persistence and threats? I never thought I’d get that from you.”

“You don’t know the half of it,” Maggie added as Beth let out a giggle.

* * *

Dove had decided that she would try to talk to Daryl when he got back from the run but had held back and decided to wait. Who would want to talk to someone when they were calming down from a tough run?

Instead, she waited until later on when Daryl was on watch. She felt more comfortable as she approached him alone than she would with anyone else watching her. “Can I interest you in a smoke,” she announced herself as she held the pack out to Daryl. His blue eyes shifted from the area he watched as he reached his hand out for the pack. “You have to let me sit first,” she smirked.

Daryl grunted. “Whatever.” He didn’t say no. So she sat beside him and pulled a cigarette from her pack. Dove flipped her lighter to life and took a drag from her cigarette before she held it out to the man.

“It’s fucking cold out here,” she hissed as she rubbed her hands together.

“Ya don’t have to be out here,” Daryl grumbled as he passed the cigarette back to her.

Dove sighed as she stretched her legs out in front of her before she settled her feet on the step below her. “Maybe I want to be. It’s the only way I can get you to talk to me anymore.” Dove mumbled as she ran a hand through her hair.

Daryl let out an annoyed huff and didn’t say anything.

Dove took another drag from her cigarette as she soaked in the silence. “Listen, I get that you’re mad about me being irresponsible and I’m sorry I know I could have gotten somebody hurt and I-”

“Don’t you know how worried Carol was when she found out why you weren’t goin on runs anymore?” Daryl snapped quietly _. Shit_. She had specifically not told her for that exact reason. “You coulda got yourself killed when I was supposed to be lookin out for you.”

Dove felt her cold cheeks grow a little warmer with embarrassment as she instinctively reached for the crystal that hung around her neck. “I didn’t mean- I just wanted to help.”

“You’re not gonna die out there.” Daryl said before it went silent again. An unspoken _not like Sophia_ hung in the air between them.

“Didn’t know you worried so much,” Dove mumbled as she took another drag from her cigarette.

Daryl didn’t answer and just stared out into the darkness. That seemed like all the answer she needed right now. A rustle of fabric beside her drew her attention from the empty space ahead of them. “You can have this back.”

“What is it?”

“You threw it at me and told me something about finding my compassion. Maybe you need it more to find your sense of survival.” Daryl grumbled as he placed the pendant in her hand. A small flicker of a smile crossed Dove’s face as she bit back a life.

“I might need a little more than this for that.”

“We’ll teach you and Carol how to shoot for real this time. Can’t be worryin about both of you all the time.” Daryl grunted.

Dove let out a quiet huff of laughter as she pulled the pendant over her head. Without thinking, she reached down over and linked her cold fingers with his. To her surprise, he flinched slightly but didn’t pull away. She decided she would stay out there with him to keep watch. Two sets of eyes were better than one, after all. 


	28. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group finds a new home

_Spring_

Dove found herself feeling safe for the first time in a while as she walked alongside Lori in the middle of the group. She was tired but she felt more hopeful than ever. It could be the sun shining all day for the first time in months or not feeling like she was about to freeze to death. Either way, she felt more hopeful about potentially finding a place for all of them soon.

The younger woman glanced back over her shoulder at the others that walked behind them. Glenn and Maggie were bringing up the rear of the group and seemed to still be on high alert. Carl seemed like he was about to talk Julian's ear off. At least the little boy had given Beth a break from his talking. He was a sweet kid, but he really did talk a lot when he had someone to listen. Carol stepped up along Lori's other side from where she had been walking with T-Dog. Dove turned and flashed the man a smile over her shoulder.

"Keepin an eye on my sister for me, T," Dove called back over her shoulder.

He laughed. "If she keeps up with the gun training, she might be the one keepin an eye on me." Dove let out a snort of laughter.

"You're learning quicker than most of us, Carol," Lori affirmed. The two older women had been more at odds lately than Dove would like to see. It wasn't that she blamed Carol, but Dove was always a little more compassionate of the two. After everything Carol had been through, especially with Ed, she couldn't necessarily blame her for going into self-preservation mode either. Dove would be the first to admit that Lori was a lot to handle.

Carol smirked slightly as she let out a hum of approval and tilted her head back to look up at the sun.

"You thought of any names yet," T-Dog changed the subject as he watched Carl speed past him. Probably on his way up to talk Beth or Hershel's ear off about something.

"Haven't really had much time to give it thought," Lori shrugged her shoulders as she instinctively placed a hand on her stomach. Nobody was sure how far along she was, but there would surely be another little life to keep track of sooner rather than later.

T-Dog seemed to straighten up a little bit. "Well, I think something like Theodore would be a great name." Julien let out a short laugh from behind him. "Something funny back there?"

"Theodore would be a pretty weird name if it's a girl," Julien called ahead.

"Theodora," Beth called back over her shoulder playfully which earned only a headshake from Hershel.

"Whoa why are we just saying she's going to name the baby after you? If she's gonna name the baby after anyone it's me!" Dove faked offense.

Carol raised an eyebrow. "Why's that?"

"Best friend privileges, of course." Lori playfully elbowed the younger woman.

T-Dog rolled his eyes. "Let's make a deal. You get best friend privileges, and you have to name something after me."

Dove let out a huff as she turned and began walking backwards. "Does a plant count or a dog?"

"Plants can count. We'll talk about the dog." They shook on it.

* * *

Finding food was still a whole hell of a lot harder than Dove thought it would be. She wasn't exactly much help with hunting as it was. The field hockey stick she had slung over her shoulder as she walked with the hunter said that much. Sure she had managed to duct tape some blades to the end of it so it worked better for killing a walker when she had to, but she even tried to avoid that.

She had cried almost all night in her tent after the first walker she'd really killed. Dove knew she had killed one back at the camp, but she'd been so focused on getting to Sophia and Carol that her body hadn't even acknowledged that she'd done it. She could almost hear one of her old professors lecturing her on defense mechanisms every time she thought about it.

"Gotta find some meat or somethin." Daryl's voice was barely audible and Dove merely nodded as Rick busted down the front door of the house. Of course there were walkers. She grimaced as she watched Carl follow close behind them into the house. "I don't know how I feel about Carl doin this."

"I'll keep an eye on him," Julian reassured Lori with a nod as he followed close behind them into the house.

It seemed like it took Rick forever to signal that everything was clear. Dove let out a grunt as she took the bag from Lori's feet despite the other woman's protests. She wasn't about to let a pregnant woman carry a heavy load.

The house was nicer than anything they'd seen in a while, that was for sure. Everyone settled down as Carl began to take the lid off a can of dog food. Dove's hazel eyes narrowed slightly as she watched Rick approach him from her perch beside Daryl. The whole room seemed to flinch as Rick threw the can across the room.

Carol placed a comforting hand on Lori's shoulder as Julien let out a heavy sigh and patted Carl on the head.

* * *

They didn't even get to stay long enough to talk about it. Walkers were everywhere again. Dove almost wanted to give up and stay but she followed just like she always did.

Dove decided to stay in the car with Lori while the others discussed a game plan. "How you feelin, mama?" Dove joked as she climbed over into the front seat.

"Bout as good as I look," Lori deadpanned.

"So pretty shitty then," Dove nodded sagely. There was silence for a moment before the two of them exchanged a look and a real laugh slipped out for the first time in what felt like forever. "We're gonna find something soon. I know it." She reached over and gave Lori's hand a squeeze.

A tap on the driver's side window made both of them jump. Dove furrowed her brow as she turned and opened the door slightly. "Jesus, you tryin to scare her enough to make her go into labor?" Lori let out another quiet laugh from over Dove's shoulder.

"Keep an eye on 'er. Me and Rick are goin huntin." Daryl instructed before he nodded at Lori.

"Try to find something good?"

"We'll try. Carl's on watch."

"Oh good." Dove smirked.

"Julian's with him."

"Well now I feel real safe," Dove rolled her eyes. Lori gave her arm a light slap as a small smirk crossed Daryl's face. Then he was gone.

* * *

Turns out, the two men had found more than any of them had counted on.

"You're kidding me," Carol mumbled under her breath.

Dove elbowed her sister lightly. "Wanna be bunkies," she whispered back as they approached the prison fence from the rear of the group.

"I'd rather share a bunk with Julian."

"Wow, harsh." Dove slung the other strap of her backpack over her shoulder as she tightened her grip on her hockey stick. Walkers could come out of anywhere if they didn't keep their wits about them.

Soon enough, the fence was cut and they were moving. A part of her felt like a teenager again; sneaking in somewhere she definitely wasn't supposed to go had always been a favorite past time. Never a prison, though. That much was new.

She ducked through the hole in the fence and began to hold back the other side for Lori when Daryl spoke. "I got it, go." Dove frowned slightly as she stepped back and watched Lori begin to make her way through the small hole in the fence.

"T?"

"He's right after her," Glenn reassured her as Lori stepped through and Dove placed a hand on her back to lead her forward down the fenced in pathway. They were all close by but in Dove's mind, the closer the better.

She felt claustrophobic as she saw the walkers closing in.

As they came to a stop, she could almost feel the certainty in Rick's voice as he began to spew ideas about ways to make it safer for all of them. For Lori and the baby.

"So how do we shut the gate?"

"A wonderful question," Julian piped up. Dove shot him a look. Rick seemed to be on thin ice with everyone lately. Might not be the best time to test the waters.

"I'll do it," Glenn offered. "You guys cover me." Dove didn't miss the panicked look that flashed quickly across Maggie's face before she tried to shoot down his idea.

"You, Maggie, and Beth draw as many as you can over there. Pop em through the fence. Daryl," Rick began to call out orders and Dove closed her eyes. She needed to focus on her breathing and not panic. The walkers were so loud and the fences were so close all around them. A part of her just wanted to volunteer to do the run herself just to be out in a more open space.

Her hazel eyes opened as she watched Carol run over towards Daryl to grab her own gun.

"I'll run for the gate," Rick said as Dove finally tuned back in fully.

"Don't sound so sure of yourself there, boss," she said quietly.

"Just keep close to Lori."

"Always do, sheriff," she shot him a playful wink as she hung back and allowed the woman space to open the gate for her husband. Had she expected a tearful goodbye? She wasn't too sure.

"Carl's a good shot," Dove raised an eyebrow as the two women stood watch at the gate.

"I wish he didn't have to be," Lori frowned.

"Crazy son of a bitch did it," Julian cheered from his perch beside Carl as Rick finally managed to close the gate.

Dove hated using a gun but she did her part. It was worth it for being able to have some safety.

A huge smile crossed her face as she linked arms with Carol to run into the field.

"We haven't had this much space since we left the farm!" Carol called over her shoulder.

Dove released her arm as they approached the pathway that cut down the middle of the large open area. "This is amazing!" She called out as she raised her hands above her head and spun in a quick circle. A loud laugh left her as T-Dog quickly ran up and nearly swept her off her feet as he embraced her.

It felt good to be home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank u all for your patience have a chapter in these trying times.  
> It may not be the best, but I'm going to try to have another chapter out sooner since I'm getting more used to a new job. My story may not be the best, but I feel dedicated to writing it even if I take breaks and even having a few solid people who read it really matters a lot! I hope you continue to enjoy the little twists and turns I have in store as we get into the prison era!


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